Truth Hidden In Nightmares
by blueeyes11218
Summary: Katara is having dreams about failing to defeat Azula and Zuko dying. While the gang is trying to help the world get over the war, will she figure out what the dreams mean? Mainly Zutara, some Kataang and Maiko to start with.
1. Prologue

Yes. This is a Zutara fic, but I'm trying to keep this as canon as possible, so there will be canon pairings to start with. Although I will be ignoring any information released about The Legend of Korra, because that ruins my fun. Also, I don't actually ship ANY pairings. It's just that this idea came to me and I had to write it. Comments on the chapter at the bottom.

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender, any of the characters here or ****the scenes referenced**, especially the dream contents. I'm not that awesome

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As soon as Appa landed in the Fire Nation's Palace courtyard, Katara felt uneasy. With most of it's occupants absent due to Ozai's planned comet-empowered attack on the Earth Kingdom, entering the Fire Nation and it's Palace had been child's play. They had successfully interrupted Azula's coronation. Yet something felt wrong about it all. The smallest worry tugged at her racing heart.

"Sorry, but you're not going to become Fire Lord today," Zuko called to Azula, jumping down from Appa and standing strong and tall. "I am." The pure confidence in his words allowed the Master Water bender to push back that small wave of doubt and climb down from Appa herself. Even as Azula cackled with a crazed amusement.

"You're hilarious…" The Fire Princess' tone only angered Katara further as she moved to stand at Zuko's side. The calm blue of her traditional Water Tribe robes both harmonised and contrasted with the deep crimson of Zuko's royal Fire Nation attire. The perfect symbol of the peaceful future they were fighting for.

"And you're going down," Katara threatened, glaring at their opponent.

Ignoring that their Princess' coronation had been challenged, the fire sages attempted to continue the ceremony, one of them moving to place the royal crown -which looked more like a decorative hair piece- on her head. Azula held up a hand to stop him, surprising the old men. Perhaps they had not expected her to react to a traitor and a Water Tribe peasant.

"Wait!" Azula demanded, getting to her feet, the blood red royal cloak swishing about her feet. "You want to be Fire Lord… Fine! Let's settle this, just you and me, brother. The showdown that was always meant to be. Agni Kai!" The malevolence on her face increased with every word. She was eager to start this battle.

"You're on." Zuko's words were so firm and calm that Katara looked at him in shock. Was he insane? He couldn't fight Azula alone. Just the idea of it brought out a ranged mixture of emotions inside of her. Surprise. Confusion. Concern. Anger. Worry. Fear. That wave of doubt came crashing down on her with a vengeance. She had to say something!

"What are you doing? She's playing you. She knows she can't take us both, so she's trying to separate us." She cast a worried glance across the courtyard, but Azula seemed content to let them debate.

"I know, but I can take her this time," Zuko said, his confidence still unwavering. His determined gaze still set upon is sister. This time however, it did nothing to settle Katara's nerves.

"But, even you admitted to your Uncle that you would need help facing Azula…"

"There's something off about her. I can't explain it, but she's slipping." Katara didn't know Azula as anything but someone that had always been trying to either capture or kill them all, a snide and powerful Fire bender. Yet, even she had to admit that the Fire Princess was giving off a different vibe than usual. And it wasn't just because of the new uneven haircut. "And this way…" Here Zuko turned to look at her and she was surprised by the warm and soft concern in his amber eyes. Eyes that had once been so cold. "…no one else has to get hurt."

Katara was about to give a small nod of agreement when the crackle of lightning split through the air. Before her eyes, Zuko was struck down. The Agni Kai had not even officially begun and now it was over. Azula had used the distraction of their conference to strike first. Zuko's dark hair fell over his face as he hit the ground hard and he stared at her through the eye that had been hurt in his first Agni Kai. The injury she had once offered to heal. She reached for him now, but a flash of blue fire separated them, knocking her back. She was forced to watched her friend burn…

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"ZUKO!" Katara clamped her hand over her mouth as she sat bolt upright in bed. She breathed heavily as if she had ran across the enormous Earth Kingdom, the sweat that ran down her face mingled with the tears. She gripped her red sheets tightly, reminding herself that it wasn't real. They hadn't lost. Azula had been defeated and was contained. Zuko was alive. She hadn't failed him. She hadn't failed anyone.

"The dreams always tell lies… The dreams always tell lies… The dreams always tell lies…" This was not the first night Katara continuously mumbled those words to herself, like a chant, trying to reassure her subconscious of the truth she knew in her heart. This was not the first time she had dreamt that she had failed. It was never the same. Yet in some way, the nightmares always made them lose the battle. As her breathing and the rapid beating of her heart settled down, she looked around her room for further reassurance. She was still in the Fire Nation palace. Not as an prisoner, but as a guest. Thankfully the bedrooms were the furthest from the courtyard that had been set ablaze. The décor was still varying shades of red, her curtains still hung open so that she could see the moon in the clear starry sky. The bucket of water she had requested still sat on the floor beside her bed. With her water bending skills, Katara used a little portion of it to cool and wash her face.

It had only been two weeks since they had won the war. So much had happened in that time. There had been little time to socialise. Aang and the others had travelled over from the Earth Kingdom, after defeating Ozai and his fleet. First to see if she and Zuko had succeeded, then to help with the consequences and preparations. Zuko and Aang had to declare the war officially over and begin withdrawing the troops, assigning ambassadors, writing up peace treaties and arranging meetings. Along with dealing with every little treachery, fear, opposition and small battle that reared it's ugly head. The conflict and distrust from the hundred year war would not disappear so easily. Just yesterday was Zuko's coronation. It had been a grand day. More Fire Nation citizens than expected were happy with their new Fire Lord and they let it be known. With fireworks and banquets across the nation. Even those that could not attend were celebrating in their homes. Mai had been released from prison and had returned to Zuko's side. And although most of the Order of the White Lotus remained in Ba Sing Se, Uncle Iroh had left to attend the coronation.

It was with him that the Avatar, the new Fire Lord and the rest of the gang of heroes sat down to drink tea after the ceremony, telling everyone what had happened to them in their part of the final battle. When they were asked about the battle with Azula, Zuko gave the details. He explained how he had had the upper hand in the battle, but Azula still managed to strike him down. He told them that it was Katara that had chained Azula down and then rushed over to heal him. Everyone had praised her and her skills, while she merely stared down into her lap.

"So you owe Katara your life, Zuko!" Aang had announced, always quick to praise the Water bender. She opened her mouth to correct him, but Zuko spoke first.

"Yes, I do. Without her, I wouldn't be here and you would all be facing Fire Lord Azula." Katara had simply stared at him, her mouth hanging open. Why didn't he tell them that it was the other way around? That he had only gotten so badly hurt because he had taken the blow for her, because HE had saved HER life. That she owed him much more than she could give. Instead he had only made everyone launch into another round of praise. Except for Toph, who sat still with a puzzled expression.

Katara sighed as she remembered that. They believed she was a huge hero for defeating Azula and healing Zuko. Yet she knew otherwise. If she had acted earlier. If she had moved herself. If she had struck back. Then Zuko would never have been hurt in the first place. Perhaps that was why the nightmares plagued her. She felt guilty that they respected her for something they shouldn't. Yet she didn't tell them the truth. Zuko had chosen not to and she would follow his lead until he told her to do otherwise.

Zuko. She needed to see him. She needed to be sure that he was alive and well. But it was still the middle of the night. She clambered out of bed and started pacing her room, the panic from her dream still lingering. The Fire Lord's chamber was just down the hall. She could creep out and just peek though the door to make sure he was okay. Nobody would know. Of course they wouldn't. Everyone else would be asleep. She could check he was sleeping soundly and then return to her room and do the same.

That decided, she stepped out into the dark corridor, lit only by the moon outside the windows, closing the door as quietly as she could. She tiptoed through the dim light, the soft carpet helping to silence her steps. Reaching Zuko's chamber, she slowly turned the handle and pushed the door open slightly. Peering through the gap, she could just about see him lying in his bed. He mumbled something and rolled over in his sleep. He was fine. He was alive. He was healthy. Just as she knew he was. She smiled gently to herself and pulled the door shut.

"Spying on the Fire Lord, Sugar Queen?"

Katara jumped and spun around, her hair hitting her in the face. There was no denying her surprise in finding Toph standing right behind her. The young, blind Earth bender certainly had better senses than she did. To some, blindness was a hindrance, but Toph had turned it into an asset. She saw with her feet and it had made her the greatest Master Earth bender of their time. Perhaps of any time, since she was solely responsible for the invention of Metal bending.

"Toph… what are…?"

"Firstly, how could you think screaming Zuko's name as loudly as you did wouldn't wake anyone up? Secondly, did you really think you could make such a fuss in your room and then sneak out when your room is right next to mine?" She shook her head and folded her arms across her chest, as if disappointed in Katara's lack of judgement.

"Shh!" Katara hushed, glancing worriedly at the door behind her. She grabbed Toph's arm and started leading her back to her room. "Let's not talk here." Thankfully there was no argument and they made it to Katara's room in silence. The Water bender sat on her bed, embarrassed at being caught.

"Alright Katara. I want answers. And don't lie, because I will know." Katara sighed. She knew that was true. Her friend had learned that particular skill through Earth bending. She also knew Toph wouldn't let her get away with it if she tried lying anyway.

"I was just checking up on him… I had a nightmare… that he died in the battle with Azula," she explained. She was reluctant to show her childishness, since she was usually the one mothering everyone, but it felt good to talk to someone. "I just wanted to show myself that Zuko is alive and well. Is that so wrong?" Instead of answering, Toph focused on something else.

"You've been having these nightmares often, haven't you?"

"Increasingly… How did you know?"

"I can feel you tossing and turning in your sleep. It's been rather distracting…" she mused. "Is it always Zuko? Do you dream about the rest of us?

"No… just him… It's always that battle. It's never the same, but somehow, Zuko always dies, Azula always wins and there's nothing I can do…" Feeling the tears well up in her eyes again, Katara hid her face in her hands. Not that there was any point where Toph was concerned. She couldn't see the tears anyway, but she'd sense them. The younger girl surprised Katara by sitting beside her and putting her arm around her shoulders. Toph usually only showed affection through punches.

"It's alright, Katara. It's probably just this place. You haven't gotten any closure from the battle," Toph reasoned. "Don't worry, we're leaving for Ba Sing Se tomorrow. Once you're back in the fresh air of the Earth Kingdom, you'll forget all about these nightmares." She grinned widely. Katara could only assume the expression was for her, as Toph had always made her dislike of the huge city very clear. Putting on a smile, she leaned against her friend.

"Thanks Toph. I hope you're right…"

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And the hinting begins! I really don't take credit for the dream at the start. That piece of mastery comes from Book Three, Episode 20, Sozin's Comet Part 3: Into the Inferno. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this! This is just the prologue, but I will try to make the other chapters longer!


	2. Setting Sail

Thank you so much everyone for your quick responses. My other stories have had reviews and whatnot before, but man, you Zutarians are fast! Of course, I have to repay you by keeping up with your pace. Lucky for me, I had this chapter written already. Thank you all again! Especially AnnaAza, Untilthemoonrises, Aipom4 and MiraiMangaka for being my first four reviews! I dedicate this chapter to you. And don't worry, AnnaAza, I promise your wish will be granted one day! Comments on the chapter at the bottom.

**Disclaimer: ****I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender, any of the characters here or ****the scenes referenced.**

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It took Appa three trips to fly everyone to the docks. With the number of them travelling to Ba Sing Se, it would've been cruel to make the poor bison fly all of them there. He was a strong beast, but he had a weight limit. He was going to swim alongside the ship until they reached the next port. Then he would have to take multiple trips to fly everyone safely across Serpents Pass without disturbing it's occupant. After that, it was a short walk to the city's outer wall.

Iroh was of course going back. The Order of the White Lotus had a lot of work to do in the city, including teaching the Earth King about the war he had been oblivious to and finding him some advisors that were actually trustworthy. Beside, he was eager to reopen The Jasmine Dragon. Iroh missed his precious tea shop and was already dressed in his Earth Kingdom robes to prove it. He was already on the boat, preparing tea for everyone. "What better way to start a journey than with a soothing cup of tea?"

Toph had told the old man to save a cup for her, but was still sat on a mound of earth on the mainland, choosing to remain on solid ground for as long as possible. The ground in front of her was shifting, small towers of earth rising up and back down again, smooth as if it had never been disturbed. She was in her usual attire, comfortable in the familiar green and yellow outfit. She was barefoot as always and her toes were wriggling in the fresh air.

Suki and Sokka were currently stood just beside the ship arguing about a large chunk of meteorite that Sokka insisted on dragging all the way to Ba Sing Se. He was determined to replace his lost space sword, which meant taking the material to his Master. Suki had argued that it was bad enough that he'd used Toph to drag it all the way to the palace in the first place, but somehow Sokka had managed to get a hold of a small barge that could be pulled along behind the ship. Which admittedly would be useful for a lot of their luggage. Sokka was dressed in his Water Tribe clothes, the lower layer that would never be seen at his home, due to the need of much warmer layers. His leg was still in a cast from the fall he'd had while trying to destroy the Fire Nation fleet. Suki often mocked that not only had she not been injured during her fall, but she'd come back with control of an airship and used it so save him. She was back in her Kyoshi Warrior uniform. The greens robes with black padding. A gold headdress rested on her short brown hair and the traditional make-up had been neatly done.

"Let's just get on the ship, Sokka," Suki said dismissively, grabbing him by the hand and pulling him. He hobbled after her, giving a thumbs up to a Fire Nation guard as they passed him. The man nodded but seemed as busy as two of his comrades who were tending to Mai.

The young woman had perched herself on a crate, resting her head on her one hand, the other draped across her lap. She was in her favoured black and red dress robe, smart and practical. She had an expression of pure boredom, although truthfully she rarely had any other expression. Her current boredom was probably due to the fact that Zuko was already on the ship with Aang, talking to the captain about their course.

Katara stood with her father, Hakoda, both in their usual Water Tribe attire. She had an arm around his waist and could feel the weight of his around her shoulders. Hakoda had only come to see the ship off. He would be staying behind to inform Zuko's advisors and council on the traditions of the Water Tribes. When everyone returned from the Earth Kingdom, they would be bringing the Earth King and other representatives with them. They would then meet the Water Tribe Chiefs and representatives at the palace for meetings to talk about world affairs. With the currently uncertain peace, it was best to avoid accidentally insulting any of the cultures.

"You should get onboard, Katara. You don't want to get left behind," Hakoda said, releasing her from his grip and moving to look at her. Katara smiled up at her father, a little reluctant to leave his side. Even though the war was now over, the family still didn't get to spend much time together.

"The ship wont be going anywhere without Toph," Katara pointed out, gesturing to the gangway to the ship. The bottom of it seemed to have melted into the ground. In reality, Toph had used a combination of her Earth and Metal bending to make sure the ship didn't leave without her say so. Hakoda gave a soft chuckle and then gestured over to Mai, who was now on her feet, pacing back and forth.

"But it does look like your friend could use some entertainment."

Katara frowned at the use of the word 'friend'. Even though they were on the same side now, they had barely spoken directly to each other. How was she supposed to simply be friends with someone who was once determined to embed daggers in her flesh? She doubted that she'd forget that in a hurry, but… she had forgiven Zuko for all he'd done. And he had done much worse. Why was it so hard to do the same for Mai?

"You're right," Katara finally replied. "I'll get her on the ship. General Iroh probably has the tea ready by now." She gave him a quick, warm hug. As she turned to go, he caught her face by the chin and held her there. He stared down into her big blue eyes, before sighing and letting go.

"Make sure you get some rest during your journey, your eyes look tired," Hakoda told her, pulling her into a big platypus-bear hug. "Take care of yourself, Katara… and your brother." Katara laughed and pulled away again.

"I will, Dad." She waved over her shoulder as she ran towards Mai. "See you in a few weeks!" Hakoda waved back, smiling proudly at his daughter. She was so much like her mother. He watched as she approached Mai, waving rather awkwardly. From what he could tell at that distance, the Fire Nation woman looked surprised to see Katara.

"Katara…" The water bender was greeted with the simple mention of her name. The Fire Nation guards had taken the welcome opportunity to move away and get on with loading the ship. Katara breathed a sigh of relief. Despite knowing they were under Zuko's orders now, she still couldn't feel entirely comfortable around people in those uniforms.

"We should get on the ship," Katara told her, being as bright as she could. "Aang and Zuko have got to be almost done talking to the Captain by now." Mai nodded at her and they both moved towards the gangway. Katara could feel an almost icy silence between, so took the time to admire the scenery instead. It was the perfect day to set sail, even though Fire Nation ships had engines not sails. The sky was a clear blue, like her own robes, with wispy white clouds stretching across it. There was a playfully light breeze that showed promise of later becoming a strong wind. The water below them was calm, the waves moving almost lazily. The port itself was alive and bustling with people. A lot of families waiting for soldiers to return home. It was evidence of how even the Fire Nation had suffered to sustain its own war. Which really explained why so many people welcomed Zuko to the throne. It really was a wonderful corona-

"I've been meaning to thank you." Katara almost stopped in her tracks, instead she turned to stare at Mai as they walked, the confusion clear on her face.

"Thank me? What for?"

"For saving Zuko," Mai replied simply. It was strange how her voice still had such a monotone in a phrase that must have held a lot of emotion. Katara sighed.

"You really don't need to thank me for that, Mai. I would have done the same for any of the others," she insisted. She really was getting tired of the little tug of guilt she felt every time someone acknowledged her so-called heroics.

"It's not just that. You were there. You were able to save him because you stood by his side against Azula in the first place." Mai looked at her pointedly and gave the smallest possible smile. At least, Katara assumed it was a smile. "I thank you for that." The water bender didn't answer her. She couldn't explain that if she hadn't been there, Zuko wouldn't have been hurt. Instead, she simply returned the smile and hoped Mai would soon go back to not paying her any attention.

Now that they were on the ship, they could see that Iroh had set himself up just to the side of the entrance to inside of the ship. Katara and Mai moved over there, sitting down on the deck and gratefully accepting the tea. Iroh started telling them about how to make the perfect cup of tea. Katara actually listened intently, curious to understand why he loved tea so much. On the other hand, Mai quietly sipped her tea and stared off into the distance.

Iroh had just moved on to the different types of tea, when the door to the left of them opened. Out stepped Aang and Zuko, still in conversation. Aang was still wearing the monk robes that he had worn to the coronation. Katara hadn't had the chance to ask when and where he had gotten them, but if the beads and amulet were what she thought they were, he had probably returned to the Sothern Air Temple for them. Zuko was in his Fire Nation robes, usually worn under the royal amour that his council had insisted on him wearing during the trip. Now that they weren't around, he had obviously abandoned the armour until he needed it. They had also insisted that he had his hair pulled up in the traditional Fire Nation style with the royal crown on top. But as he was speaking, he was pulling it out, letting his dark hair fall over his face, partially covering the burn mark on the left side of his face.

"It's a longer route, but at least that way we'll avoid angering the serpent," Aang finished the conversation, a wide grin spreading across his face as he spotted the small tea party just by the door. "Hey guys! We're leaving as soon as Toph is ready." He wasted no time in hopping into the space between Katara and Iroh, eagerly accepting his tea. Zuko took his place next to Mai and his Uncle and accepted his tea with less enthusiasm. Katara caught his eye before shifting her gaze quickly away. She had to wonder if he noticed.

"Everything is prepared. We should leave while the weather holds," the Fire Lord said simply, staring out to the ocean. Mai was leaning on him now, her tea abandoned. Iroh let out a loud chortle.

"As Avatar Aang pointed out, I believe that decision is left to young Miss Toph." Just as he finished speaking, there was a loud shout.

"Move out of the way you dunderheads! HI-YAH!" Following this was a loud crash and the splash of water. Everyone exchanged confused and worried glances until Toph appeared on deck. The young earth bender stomped her way over to them, an extremely displeased look on her face. Her clothes were dripping with water.

"Toph? What happened?" Katara asked as she got to her feet. She used her water bending to draw the water out of Toph's clothes and off the ship, back into the ocean. So thankfully the earth bender was left completely dry.

"Your brother happened!" she exclaimed, crossing her arms. "Those Fire Nation soldiers couldn't get that chunk of space rock onto the barge, so I used earth bending to move it and the force of it almost sunk the barge and made a big wave that splashed me." She threw her arms back for emphasis, then stopped to look around with her feet. "I'm going to give him a piece of mind!"

"Suki is making him settle in his room so he can rest his leg," Zuko tried to tell her, but she had already stormed off through the door, slamming it behind her. Zuko turned back to face the others, finding Katara and Aang trying to contain their laughter. Mai and Iroh both looked as perplexed by it as he was. "What's so funny?" It was Aang who found breath first.

"Sokka, Toph, Katara and I once pushed that rock all the way to Master Piandao's place when it was twice the size!" He managed to get out before bursting into laughter.

"Your soldiers really need to work out more, Zuko!" Katara added before covering her mouth to stifle her own laughter.

"I'll be sure to tell them," Zuko muttered darkly, suddenly becoming very interested in his tea. "At least we can leave now. Someone should go tell the Captain."

"I'll go. I'm already up," Katara offered, finally getting over her giggle fit. She needed to get away from the group anyway. She had a feeling that she'd keep staring at Zuko if she stayed much longer. Someone might get the wrong idea. She was through the door before anyone could object or offer to join her.

Somewhere below deck there was a loud creaking of metal and a strangled yelp from Sokka.

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**A/N: ** No dreams this time! I not trying to torture you all with the lack of Zutara, I promise! I'm just a strong believer in subtlety and progression. I apologise in advance to anyone concerned about me causing further injury to Sokka. Don't worry, I wouldn't do any lasting damage to one of my favourite characters! I've been told in the past that I need to work on my descriptions, so I really did try on this one. I had some trouble in regards to their clothing, mainly not knowing what most items are called. If anyone wants to help me out, feel free. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next one!


	3. Dinner on a Cold Night

Comments on the chapter at the bottom.

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender, any of the character here or scenes referenced.**

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"You had it coming."

"You still didn't have to wrap me up in metal! I'm already injured!"

"I didn't touch your leg."

"But it hurt when I tried to run!"

"Then you should know better."

"WHAAAA-"

"Told you that rock would cause trouble."

This final word came from Suki, bringing the banter to an end. Toph leaned back in her seat, a triumphant grin on her face. While Sokka poked at the vegetables on his plate, having realised that he wouldn't be getting any sympathy. The gang were in the dining room of the ship. It was crowded and the combination of the dull red decorations and the grey steel made it look gloomy. Nonetheless, the atmosphere was a cheery one. Aside from Sokka's defeat, of course. They were all well on their way to the Earth Kingdom now and were halfway through a well cooked royal feast. It certainly made a difference when compared to the way they travelled around before.

As Fire Lord, Zuko was sat at the head of the table, Mai on his left and Iroh on his right. Aang sat at the opposite end with Sokka on his right, Katara on his left. Toph was seated between Katara and Mai(which the water bender considered a relief). Suki sat opposite her, between Iroh and Sokka. Katara was fairly certain the Kyoshi Warrior was holding Sokka's hand under the table. Between them all, the table had been filled with the most glorious meal, including some native Fire Nation dishes that the foreigners had to question. Now the plates were mostly empty, only bits of bone, shells and scattered pieces of vegetables were left. Katara had encouraged everyone to take some, but only Aang had been enthusiastic about the alternative to meat. Everyone else had just politely taken a small portion, except for Sokka, who had to have his forced onto his plate. Since most of the food was gone, Iroh got to his feet and started serving tea.

"So you're re-opening the Jasmine Dragon as soon as we get to Ba Sing Se, Uncle?" Zuko asked, filling the silence left after Toph and Sokka's argument. Iroh filled his cup with tea and the young man lifted it to his lips.

"Yes. When we re-conquered the city, many people recognised me and hoped I would opening soon," Iroh told him, a big smile on his face. If there was anything he enjoyed more than drinking tea, it was seeing others enjoy tea that he'd served them. "Jin was especially curious. She asked about you."

Even at the other end of the table, Katara could see Zuko's eyes widen as he spat out the tea he'd just drank and start choking. After a moment, he regained his composure and gave an awkward smile.

"R-really? Uh… how is she?" He didn't look comfortable asking and was certainly avoiding Mai's cold gaze. Everyone else at the table had fallen silent, curious as to what was making Zuko so nervous.

"She is doing well. She wasn't even surprised to hear we are Fire Nation." Iroh paused for a moment to chuckle softly to himself. "She said you didn't make a very a good juggler." He chuckled again, before moving on to continue serving tea around the table. Mai was shooting daggers(metaphorical ones) at Zuko, clearly not pleased with talk of a girl she'd never heard about. Toph had raised an eyebrow and sat forward in her seat to place her feet firmly on the floor. Katara's curiosity was hidden behind a smug grin. She had to wonder how the mere mention of a girls name brought out such a reaction in the young Fire Lord. Aang had a playful look on his face and was almost hovering on his seat. Suki wore a polite smile, but her head was curiously titled to one side. It was Sokka who broke the ice by bursting out in hysterical laughter and pointing across the table at Zuko.

"When- When did you ever juggle, Zuko?" he managed to breathe.

"I didn't!" Zuko answered angrily, slamming his fist on the table. "It was a cover story!" This only made Sokka laugh harder, holding his stomach.

"I bet you can't even juggle!

"You don't know that! I could be a great juggler!"

"Then prove it!"

"I don't have to prove anything to you!"

Zuko could only glare across the table as Sokka's laughter got over exaggerated. He had put his head on the table and was slapping the table with one hand. Iroh finished pouring the tea by filling his own cup and sat down to drink it.

"Juggling is made more difficult on a ship that is rocking on the waves of the ocean. Perhaps this is a challenge best left for later," he said calmly, cutting off Sokka's laughs and making Zuko sit back in his seat and sigh. Everyone could tell that the topic would be picked up again one day. "For now, we should finish our tea and go get some rest."

There was a rather reluctant silence as they started drinking their tea, but it eventually dissolved into separate chatter. Iroh continued telling Zuko, Mai and Toph about his plans for his tea shop. Zuko seemed content to listen to him, while Mai's face was a mixture of annoyance and boredom. Toph seemed interested enough, she had always liked Iroh, but at times she seemed to be listening intently to something no one else could hear. Aang was telling everyone else about the zoo he had created for Ba Sing Se. Once everyone's house pets had been returned, the people were quite happy with it.

"Would you like to go see it with me, Katara?" Aang asked, a hopeful gleam in his eye. "We could go before the meeting with the Earth King!"

"I would Aang, but…" She paused and then grabbed Toph's arm, literally dragging the earth bender into the conversation. She wasn't ready to be alone with Aang. "Toph and I were planning on having a girl's day out! We really enjoyed our makeovers last time!" Toph gave Katara a weird look. She didn't need her feet to know she was lying, but she didn't understand why. So she just agreed.

"Yeah, it will take most of the morning."

"Ooh, can I come?" Suki asked, leaning forward in her seat. "With all my duties as a Kyoshi Warrior, I don't get to do stuff like that very often!" Her eagerness decided the plan as Katara nodded. They would have to go now, Aang couldn't argue.

"Don't worry, Aang. I'll come see the animals with you," Sokka said, patting the disappointed air bender on the shoulder. Aang had been staring disappointedly at his plate, but now he looked up and gave a grateful smile. Sokka's face lit up. "Maybe we can bring one home for dinner!"

"THEY'RE NOT FOR EATING!"

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Once they were finished with their tea, everyone filed out of the dining hall and went their separate ways. Mai disappeared to her room at a speed no one had expected. Zuko hurried after her, hoping to get her to talk to him. Suki walked Sokka to his room before going to her own. Although he could have managed on his own, even with this injured leg. It was surprising he didn't say so. He didn't like to have his manliness challenged. Iroh wandered off in search of the guard that had promised to play Pai Sho with him. Toph stood, feeling with her feet. When Katara moved to go up to the deck and Aang followed with a basket of food in his arms, she headed to her room. Katara hadn't paid any attention to her company until he'd hopped to her side.

"Where are you going, Katara?" Aang asked. "Your room is the other way."

"I just wanted to get some fresh air before bed," she replied. In all honestly, she didn't like the idea of going to bed at all. She was afraid Toph would be wrong and she'd get plagued by those nightmares again. If she ended up screaming or shouting in her sleep, everyone on the ship would hear her. Here the walls were thin and the halls echoed. "What about you?"

"I'm just going to feed Appa and Momo." Aang raised the basket he held. It was filled with everything they hadn't eaten at dinner. It also looked like he had sneaked some things off the table before anyone had had a chance to eat them. There was also a whole cabbage which must have come straight from the kitchen. "Would you like me to join you when you're done?"

"Actually…" Katara stopped to look at him. He had that hopeful look in his eyes and she knew she was about to disappoint him again. But there was no way she was going to get away with staying up all night if Aang was with her. He'd be too worried about her. After all, her father had already noticed how tired she looked. She sighed. "… I was hoping to get some time to myself. There's some things I need to think about."

"Oh…" For a moment, Katara got the disappointed look that she had expected, then Aang suddenly grinned up at her. "That's okay, Katara! I understand!" The water bender smiled back at him. As surprised as she was, she was grateful that he wasn't angry or upset.

"Thanks Aang."

When they reached the deck, Katara moved towards the front of the ship. Night had fallen and the deep blue sky was filled with stars. They made it seem that little bit brighter than the dark ocean that stretched out beneath it. Aang used his air bending to launch himself off the deck onto Appa's back. The bison was swimming along side the ship as planned, although the deck was large enough for him to be onboard if he got tired. Momo had been perched on Appa's head, but he flew over onto Aang's shoulder in order to get first pickings at the food basket. Katara watched them with a little interest, stopping at the side of the ship, just before it sloped up into the point at the front. The winged-lemur had managed to steal a peach from the basket, while Aang had leaned down over Appa's face and tossed the cabbage and some other food into the bison's open mouth. Once the food was gone, Aang was talking to Momo, who chattered back before flying back down onto Appa's head, curling up to sleep. Once again, Aang used air bending to make the jump back on to the ship. He raised his hand in Katara's direction.

"See you in the morning, Katara!" he called.

"Goodnight Aang!" she called back, waving back and watching him go. Finally. Some peace. Now that she was alone, her arms wrapped around her as she shivered from the cold. She should have gone to her room and grabbed her coat, the fur on it would have kept her warm. Instead, she held herself to keep warm, staring up at the night sky. If she closed her eyes, she could hear the gentle rolling of the waves against the ship as it sliced through the ocean. Her hair was down, except for her 'loopies' and bun, so it blew freely in the light breeze. In the distance, the moon hung almost full in the sky. It made her think of Princess Yue and she silently prayed that her friend would appear before her and tell her the meaning of her dreams. As the moon spirit, she was connected to greater things.

However, her wish was not granted. Perhaps the spirits were too busy to worry about the inner workings of her mind. She had to figure out what the dreams meant. If they meant anything at all. Perhaps Toph was right and she just needed to be away from the palace, perhaps she really did need closure. Yet she refused to allow herself to sleep until they were all staying in rooms that weren't so close together. She sighed and gazed at the moon again, holding her hands together beneath her chin. _Please Yue. Please do something to help me. Anything._

Her prayers were interrupted by the land clanging of the door to below deck being thrust open and slammed shut again. The echoing noise was followed by an angry shout.

"Girls are crazy!" Katara turned to see Zuko marching across the deck. In his frustration, he seemed not to have seen her. She crossed her arms across her chest and looked at him with a smug grin.

"Glad to know what you think of us." He looked up suddenly and then simply marched in her direction. The water bender was slightly disappointed. She had hoped to make him jump. He stopped right next to her, leaning on the side of the boat and staring into the ocean. She was on his left side and close enough that she could reach up and touch his scar if she wanted to, like she had in Ba Sing Se. It reminded her that she had offered to heal it, but she couldn't imagine doing so now. It seemed like such a big part of him.

"Seriously, are you all this crazy?" he said finally, his question slightly calmer now. "Or is it just the girls I date?" Katara gazed at him for a moment, before pulling herself up to sit and balance on the side of the ship, her hands lightly falling in her lap. Unsure of how to answer, she settled for questioning his mood.

"So things didn't go well with Mai after dinner?" Zuko glanced at her, only to find her deep blue eyes filled with concern. He sighed and turned to look at her properly.

"She wouldn't let me in the room…" he explained, looking at Katara as if she could make him understand why. "She didn't mind shouting at me through the door though… From what I can tell, she's mad that I never mentioned Jin to her. And when I said that I didn't think it was important, she told me to get lost… I don't get it." He frowned, looking down at the floor, only to look up again when he heard Katara suppressing her laughter. "What's so funny?"

"I'm sorry," Katara said, calming herself. "I just didn't know that Mai could be so emotional…"

"She can be when she's angry…" he muttered, turning to lean back against the side of the ship, turning his head to look at Katara. She could feel warmth spreading from him. He had to be using his chi to combat the cold night. It made her want to move closer to him. Instead she watched him silently. Zuko had his arms folded across his chest, staring down at the floor as if there were answers written there. If they had been talking about someone other than Mai, she would have tried giving him some advice, but she had no idea how Mai worked. She reach out to put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, but paused as a mischievous grin spread across her face.

A small trickle of water stretched up from the ocean, curling up into a small ball above Zuko's head. At which point Katara dropped her hands and with them, the water fell.

"GYAAAH!" She'd succeeded in making him jump this time. Though the sudden introduction of cold water to a warm body would make anyone jump. "Katara? What the hell?" At first the water trickled down his head, dripping off the ends of his hair. Then it started evaporating, the steam rising off his head.

"You looked like you needed to cool off," Katara giggled, sliding down from her seat so that she wouldn't find herself falling back into the ocean as she laughed.

"That wasn't funny…" Zuko told her.

"I certainly though it was," Katara shot back, her laughter dying down to a triumphant grin. Finally, she earned herself a small reluctant smile. Smiles from him were so rare that it was always nice to see him show a little happiness. Although it was rather distracting when she was trying to think of how to help him out. Finally, she poked him in the chest. "So tell me about this Jin girl. What's the story there?"

"Ow…" Zuko moaned, pretending that her poke had hurt. Katara rolled her eyes, as he rubbed his chest before giving a small shrug. "It's not really a story. I went on one date with her, which Uncle talked me into. We had a nice time, but that was it."

"You had a nice time?" Katara repeated curiously. She'd never heard him say something like that before. Not that they'd had a lot of time for purely social gathering. In fact, this was the first time she'd spoken to him alone since the battle with Azula. She took a step closer to him, suddenly very interested in the girl that had spent time with Zuko, without having to worry about the war and politics. "What is she like?"

"She's… uh… She smiles a lot. And laughs. She was very interested in whatever I had to say…" Zuko paused and Katara sensed there was something he wasn't telling her. If only Toph were there to call him out on it. "She's just nice."

"She sounds so different," Katara mused. "I thought Mai was your type."

"I don't really have a type," he mumbled.

"Doesn't that just mean you don't know what you want?" Katara asked. But what did she know? She wasn't exactly the expert in relationships. The first guy she had fallen for had turned out to be too inconsiderate of innocent lives while achieving his goals. Then there was Aang. He was just… well… Aang. Happy-go-lucky Avatar, who had never given up on her. Zuko had been on her mind a lot lately, although she put that down to the dreams. You would think about someone if you kept having nightmares about them dying. Aunt Wu had once told her that she would marry a powerful bender, but that didn't classify as something that she necessarily wanted. So it wasn't like she knew what she was talking about at all. Still, Zuko seemed almost shocked at her words, as if he had never looked at it that way. He simply stared at Katara for a while, searching for words.

"I know I want Mai to stop being angry with me," he said finally, as if that answered Katara's questioning of his general romantic interests.

"Then why don't you tell her that your past doesn't matter? Tell her that she's the one that you care about now," Katara suggested, somewhat reluctantly. "That's what I'd like to hear, if I were in her position." Again. How did she know that she would want to hear that? She'd never had any reason to be jealous of anyone. Perhaps, if Aang hadn't asked her personally to dance with him in front of everyone, she would have been jealous of that Fire Nation girl at the dance party in the cave. It was possible, but she didn't know for sure.

Suddenly, all thoughts were wiped from her mind as Zuko pulled her into a hug. His arms wrapped around her waist and hers automatically lifted to his shoulders as she rested her head on his chest. Katara didn't understand why he was hugging her, but she knew that he was warm and at that moment, she didn't want to let go.

"Thank you for talking to me about all this, Katara," he said finally, his words low and soft. "It's helped make me feel a little better at least." He squeezed her gently and she squeezed back, before looking straight up into those amber eyes of his and smiling.

"You're welcome, Zuko," she replied, pulling away from his chest slowly, reluctant to leave the warmth. "Any time." She pulled away completely, taking a small step back. She still felt warm. He gave her a small thankful smile.

"We should get to bed," Zuko said suddenly, stretching his arms up and arching his back. "You look like you could use some sleep." Katara almost laughed. Her lack of sleep must have been more obvious than she though, if even Zuko was noticing. Yet somehow, she could still feel the warmth of his hug, even though he was no longer touching her. It made her feel that she might be able to sleep undisturbed after all.

"Sure. It's getting freezing out here anyway." Perhaps it was, but Katara had never felt more immune to the cold in her life.

* * *

**A/N: **Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed the hug. I wasn't too sure about it, but I'll let you be the judge. See you next chapter!


	4. Setting Up Camp

Comments on chapter at the bottom.

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender, any of the characters here or scenes referenced.**

* * *

The rest of the boat journey went without any trouble. Mai was talking to Zuko again and he had let Katara choose the meals for the rest of the journey, as thanks for the advice. Aang was the only one who really appreciated the increased number of vegetables. Sokka was complaining less about his leg each time the ship's physician and Katara looked at it, although he complained more about his boredom instead. Which resulted in a heated argument when Katara joked that he was starting to sound like Mai. Suki was teaching Aang about Kyoshi Island, its warriors and traditions. Now that the war was over, it was his duty to know all about the various cultures, so that he could help maintain the peace. Iroh often joined them out of interest, if he was not off playing Pai Sho. The water bender herself had finally caught up on her sleep. She wasn't sure if it was thanks to the time she'd spent with Zuko or the soothing tea that Iroh served every night. Maybe it was simply that Toph was right about getting away from the palace. The earth bender had certainly thought so when Katara had spoken to her.

As much as she adored being out on the ocean, Katara was glad to have her feet on the ground again when they reached the port in the Earth Kingdom. Perhaps not as glad as Toph, who had created an earth tent for herself to sit in while everyone else unloaded the ship. If she didn't already know how much her friend hated being on the ocean, Katara would have demanded that she help.

The atmosphere at this port was different to the one in the Fire Nation. Everyone that passed by was uneasy about a Fire Nation ship being docked. In the past, that had been a bad omen. However most of their spirits lifted when they heard it was the Avatar's transport, but there was still a nervous edge to their smiles. After a hundred years of war, no one could quite get used to the idea that the Fire Nation was no longer a threat. It made shopping for supplies difficult, but Zuko tried his best to get along with the locals and they seemed to appreciate his efforts. It helped that Aang went around telling everyone he met that they were going to meet the Earth King to negotiate the terms of the peace treaty. He told them about the plans for the meeting with all the leaders of the nations and let the rumours spread like wild fire. Hopefully word would travel faster than they did and they would avoid future awkwardness.

There was a bit of trouble with organisation once they got all the supplies off the ship. Who and what would fly across Serpent's Pass first? What would they do about Sokka's meteor? The Fire Nation guards insisted that Zuko didn't travel without them and Mai was reluctant to set up camp while waiting for everyone else and so refused to go across on the first trip. Eventually it was decided that the Fire Nation guards would stay behind with the ship. Zuko encouraged them to change out of their armour and go interact with the locals. It was not just the leaders that would have to get along in this new era of peace after all. They would also be leaving Sokka's rock and would talk to the Earth King about retrieving it once they reached Ba Sing Se. With that decided, Zuko and Aang then worked out the order in which they would all be flying.

It was decided that Aang would first fly Zuko and Katara across with the tents and everything they would need to start making dinner. The two of them would set up camp and start cooking while Aang went back to get Sokka, Suki, Mai and the rest of the supplies. Then he would make a final trip to pick up Toph, Iroh and whatever they had acquired at the market. All of them would eat and camp for the night, before heading to Ba Sing Se in the morning.

The trip across Serpent's Pass was uneventful. Zuko spent most of it leaning over Appa's saddle, hoping for a glimpse of the very creature they were trying to avoid. He didn't understand what was so terrifying about a simple sea serpent. Katara glanced at him every now and then over the top of the water bending scroll she was immersed in. Aang was concentrating on flying Appa, but turned every now and then to grab Katara's attention. When they finally landed on the other side of Serpent's Pass, Zuko and Katara climbed down from Appa and stared up at Aang, who had not moved from his seat.

"Aren't you going to help us get the supplies down from Appa before you leave?" Katara asked in her usual mother-like tone, putting her hands on her hips.

"Sure." Aang got to his feet and jumped, twirling himself in the air. Then the air twirled with him, creating a mini-tornado that lifted all the supplies from Appa's back. He then bent the air, so that it dropped all of the supplies at their feet. Satisfied, Aang grinned and sat back down, Appa's reins in his hands. "You're welcome! Appa, yip yip!" The bison launched himself into the air, turning and disappearing back the way they had came, leaving Katara and Zuko staring at the sky.

"Well… at least he got it all done for us," Zuko said carefully, noticing the less-than-amused look on the water bender's face. She sighed and picked up one of the packs.

"Let's just set up camp…" She moved away from the waters edge into the trees of the forest, until they reached a clearing with enough space to set up camp.

Neither of them really spoke as they worked. Unless it was for something as redundant as where the cooking pot was or who was going to collect firewood. Katara focused on getting everything ready for dinner. She washed out the cooking pot and set it up ready. She gathered the firewood to light underneath it and unpacked the food. Although she wouldn't be starting dinner until Sokka, Suki and Mai arrived. Otherwise it would be cold by the time Toph, Iroh and Aang finally completed the trip. Having left all the work of setting up tents and dragging logs for them to sit on to Zuko, Katara finished first. She turned to watch him set up the last of the tents. A small smile lit up her face when she saw that he had been putting all the rain covers over each of them.

"Let me help," she said, moving over to help him secure the last one.

"Thanks Katara," Zuko replied, getting to his feet. As he did, he winced and placed a hand on his chest. A movement that did not go unnoticed. When he looked up, Katara was glaring at him, hands on her hips. He tried shrugging it off by moving over to the firewood the water bender had prepared. He placed the sticks and self-lit the wood, letting the fire crackle as if it had been burning for hours. However Katara was determined not to let him go.

"How long has your injury been bothering you, Zuko?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Yes it does. Why haven't you mentioned it to anyone?"

"I've been busy."

"Take off your shirt."

"What?"

"When Aang got struck by Azula's lightening, I had to give him healing sessions every day. And even then, it took weeks for it to feel better," Katara explained. She was too concerned about Zuko's pain to be embarrassed by the idea. "You've been so busy becoming Fire Lord that you haven't had any real treatment since the day it happened. It's not doing you any good, Zuko!"

"It's none of your business, Katara!"

"I'm making it my business! You wouldn't even have that injury if it wasn't for me!" There was a moment of silence. They both froze, as if they only just realised they had been yelling and were now unsure of what to do. Zuko looked down at the ground. Katara just sighed. "Please Zuko, let me heal you."

The Fire Lord looked back at her to argue, but stopped when he saw her face. Her sky blue eyes were shaking, the mixture of hurt and guilt apparent in the way she held herself. She felt almost too ashamed to meet his gaze. He'd never realised that his injury had affected her so much. Then everything shifted. As he sighed, a flash of hope crossed her face.

"Fine." Katara's face lit up with that one word. She joined Zuko by the fire, sitting at his side as he undid the tie from around his waist and shrugged off his tunic. Her eyes immediately focused on the mark just below his chest, in the centre. It didn't look any better than it had on the day of Sozin's comet. She mentally kicked herself for not noticing his pain earlier.

"Lie down," Katara ordered, giving his shoulder a gentle nudge. He silently complied, watching as she bent some water out of the pouch that hung on her back and covered her own hands with it. Even though she could have pulled water from the air around them, it was easier to have a supply ready. Very carefully, she placed her hands on the mark, the water glowing with her energy as she began to work. As her hands started moving continuously in a circular motion, she couldn't help remembering how he had saved her. It was such a risk. Her nightmares had shown more than once what could have happened if she hadn't defeated Azula and healed him in time. It had been a very brave and selfless move on Zuko's part. Yet no one knew about it. Katara paused and sighed softly.

"Katara?" Zuko lifted his head and gazed at her. The look in his eyes as soft as his voice had been. Apparently her water-healing was at least very relaxing. The water bender didn't say anything for a moment, going back to her healing while she considered whether or not to ask him the questions that had been gathering in her mind for the past few weeks.

"You haven't told anyone the truth about how you got this, Zuko," she said finally, glancing at his face. She noted that he suddenly seemed a little uncomfortable, the muscles under her palms becoming very tense, but she pressed on anyway, "Why? It's not anything for you to be ashamed of. So why haven't you told anyone?"

"Well, they'd all make a big deal out of it…" Zuko replied, rather uneasily in a tone that was quite unlike his own. "They would ask questions." Ask questions? Surely, they would just praise him like they had her. Unless someone dared to ask the question that was now at the front of her mind. The question that held her curiosity so much that the words were slipping out before she had time to think them through.

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why did you save me, Zuko? You could have died! And still you…" Katara paused, taking a breath. She would not cry over this again, like she had at the time, or like one of the many times she had woken from her nightmares. Not now, when he was watching her so silently, so intensely. "Why did you do it? Why did you take such a risk?" She'd stopped healing him now, letting go of the water and letting it run down his sides to the ground. Her hands were on the ground either side of him, so she was practically leaning over him as he stared up at her. He gave her the same look of uncertainty he'd had when he'd sat outside his Uncle's tent before the comet, gathering the strength to apologise. Just like then, Katara wanted to tell him that, whatever he said next, it would be okay. Zuko sighed and propped himself up on one arm, the other reaching slowly for her face.

"Katara…" There was a long pause as they stared into each other eyes. His heated amber eyes burned into the cooling pools of blue that threatened to wash over him. Katara become very aware of the water of the bay hitting the rock, of the wind whistling through the trees and of their shadows that stretched across the earth in the setting sun. It seemed like they each held their breath as moments passed, until Zuko finally opened his mouth to speak again.

"What are you two doing?"

Katara and Zuko both jumped like they had been shocked. Zuko's hand whipped back and Katara sat bolt upright so that she was no longer leaning over him. They looked up to see Aang and Mai staring at them. They hadn't even heard the pair making their way through the trees. It was Mai who had spoken. She had her arms crossed and was impatiently tapping her foot, waiting for some kind of explanation. Aang just stood with his mouth hanging open, his hand limply pointing at them as if he had forgotten about it.

"Zuko's injury was bothering him," Katara explained, avoiding looking at anyone as she got to her feet. It was Aang's expression that had made her realise exactly how her position with Zuko had looked. The thought brought a slight tinge of pink to her cheeks. Using her bending, she pulled the water that she'd spilt over him back into the animal skin case on her back.

"Ooooooh! You were giving him a healing session!" Aang said, slapping his forehead as if he thought it was stupid of him to think of anything else. "Katara gave me healing sessions almost every day after Azula shocked me. They really helped! Zuko is really lucky that Katara has such great healing abilities!" This explanation was definitely for Mai's benefit and the woman's expression certainly softened. She loved Zuko and was really beginning to like Katara. There was no real reason to doubt that was true. Of course, it was true. Healing was all Katara had intended on doing, even if they'd gotten a little too close.

"HEY!" Everyone was spared the thought of what to say next as Sokka shouted though the trees. He came into view with Suki, who was carrying several bags while he had just one slung over his back. Although he did have the issue of getting through the foliage with his crutch. "You guys can't just wander off and leave us to carry all the baggage! I'm injured! And Suki is just a g-"

"Just a WHAT, Sokka?" Suki asked, cutting him off and dumping the bags she'd carried onto the ground once they reached the campsite. She put her hands on her hips and stared him down, daring him to finish his sentence.

"Just a great warrior who has her hands full with making sure I don't trip and further injure myself?" Sokka amended with a huge smile and a look in his eyes that resembled a puppy-cat's.

"That's better," Suki replied with a smile, helping throw off the bag from his back and get a seat on one of the logs that Zuko had dragged over out of the forest. "We need to get the rest of the supplies from Appa." She started moving back the way they'd came, indicating that she was volunteering.

"I'll help you," Katara offered, eager to escape the awkward atmosphere that still lingered. Although she did feel slightly guilty that she was abandoning Zuko to his fate with Mai. She followed Suki, with Aang not far behind. He still had another trip to make after all. As she went, Mai moved past her and knelt down next to Zuko, exactly where Katara had been sitting moments ago.

"When did you stop bandaging this?" Katara didn't hear Zuko's reply as they left the campsite behind.

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**A/N: **This chapter is shorter than the last one, which makes me kinda sad. I'm hoping for something much longer next time. This chapter took longer to write too, mostly because Mai was blocking me, making my mind wander off to ways of conveniently leaving her out of the story. The result of that will be on my deviantArt(account of the same name as this one) as soon as I get to a scanner. Also, I'm fairly certain that normal cats and dogs exist in Avatar, but the word 'puppy-cat' wouldn't leave me alone. Off to Ba Sing Se in the next chapter!


	5. Uh hi!

Comments on chapter at the bottom.

**Disclaimer: I**** don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender, any of the characters here or scenes referenced.**

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There's nothing like a campfire to settle the mood of a group. By the time Aang returned with Toph, Iroh and all of the general's 'bargains', including a brand new Tsungi Horn, everything at camp was set up ready for the night. The great flying bison lay a few metres away from camp, having a well earned rest. On the log closest to him sat Aang, eagerly digging into his vegetable soup. Momo perched on his shoulder, hoping for a taste. While everyone else waited for their stew to be done.

Sokka was lying on the ground just along to the left of Aang, using the log as a headrest. Suki sat on the log next to Sokka, every so often absent-mindedly playing with his hair, which had been pulled free from his warriors wolf tail. Mai sat on the log opposite them. Her arms were folded and on leg was crossed over the other, her foot bouncing impatiently. Most likely because Zuko had his back to her, listening to his Uncle telling everyone about the market. Toph was sat next to the old man, intently listening to something else. If anyone was unaware of the Earth bender's blindness, they would have though she was staring at Katara.

The water bender was in the middle of it all, cooking the food. Occasionally filling a bowl and handing it over to someone, saving her own for last as always. As she cooked, most of her time was spent watching Zuko, quickly turning away whenever he caught her gaze. She sincerely wished that Mai and Aang hadn't interrupted when they did, curious about what Zuko had been about to say. While everyone else took part in conversation, Katara spent the rest of the evening wondering about it.

* * *

Thanks to Iroh and Zuko rising with the sun, everyone was ready to leave for Ba Sing Se very early the next morning. It wasn't far to the outer wall, which -thanks to the local earth benders- had already been repaired from the White Lotus' attack. Aang left the gang to fly ahead on Appa and let the Earth King know they had arrived. Only Momo went with him. Everyone else took the tram into the city. Iroh eagerly led them all to the Jasmine Dragon, determined to re-open immediately. Although all he did was open the doors and star brewing tea. He was planning for a much more grand opening later in the week.

It didn't take long for everyone to settle down. All their supplies were put in the back room, where they cleared space for all of them to sleep. Katara and Suki disappeared into town for a few hours, returning with armfuls of Earth Kingdom robes, which everyone sorted through and found some to change to. Katara had also brought back some flowers to put out on the tables and she borrowed one for her hair. During that time, a number of customers came and went. All of whom were pleased to see Iroh, either as savoir of Ba Sing Se or as their favourite tea server. The hours passed by rather quickly, with the gang relaxing or helping Iroh and the shop. It wasn't until she arrived that anything really interesting happened.

She wore the robes of an Earth Kingdom peasant, although the warm greens suggested she lived no lower than the middle ring of Ba Sing Se. Her hands were held together in her sleeves that were long enough to almost completely conceal her fingers if she were to hold her arms down. Although she had two large bangs either side of her face, most of her dark hair was put into two braids that hung down over her chest, almost reaching her stomach. She held herself in a polite manner as her jade eyes scanned the shop. It wasn't until her gaze landed on Zuko and a grin spread across her face that everyone realised that the Fire Lord has frozen solid.

There was sudden movement from three different places, all heading towards Zuko. The girl looked ready to sweep him into a hug. Mai had jumped from her seat to hurry and put herself between. She was beaten there by Katara, who side-stepped in front of Zuko and waved a hand at the girl in greeting. The girl gave a polite smile, but focused her attention on Zuko, who still hadn't moved a muscle.

"Hi Lee! I mean… you're Zuko now, right? It's good to see you again," she was still smiling, even as she was met with silence. Katara frowned. Who was this girl to call Zuko so casually? He had a title now, surely that demanded a higher level of respect from someone that wasn't a close frie- Oooooooh…

"You must be Jin," Katara intervened, resulting in Zuko finally moving and letting out the breath he had apparently been holding. The girl smiled and nodded, taking the hand that Katara had offered and shaking it politely, "We've heard a lot about you. I'm Katara. That's Sokka, Suki and Toph." She gestured to each of her friends as she said their names. Finally she pointed to Mai, who had stopped a few steps behind Zuko when she realised that Katara had beaten her to the punch. "And that's Mai, Zuko's girlfriend."

Jin's smile faltered slightly, but it was hidden as she respectfully bowed her head. Her grin was back, but Katara noticed how familiar the forced expression seemed. She immediately felt sorry for her. Apparently there was more between Jin and Zuko than they had been told.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all. Iroh has told me so much about Zuko's wonderful friends," Jin said politely. "I would love to get to know you all better, so I'll come by tomorrow. Right now, I have to return home." She turned and waved goodbye, quickly making her leave. There was a "humph!" from Mai and Katara felt a wave of guilt. Telling everyone she would be right back, she ran out of the tea shop.

"Jin! Wait!" The water bender caught up to the Earth Kingdom girl just down the street. She was glad when Jin stopped and waited for her, frowning slightly. Perhaps wondering why Katara had felt the need to chase her.

"I'm so sorry for interrupting you like that," she said, her eyes shamefully glancing away, before moving to meet Jin's as she offered her explanation. "I just thought it would be better if I got to you before Mai. That girl is not known for being gentle…" Mai probably wouldn't have been against physically pushing Jin away from Zuko. Katara shook her head at the thought. "Anyway, I'm really sorry."

To her complete surprise, Katara found Jin suddenly laughing at her, her hands actually coming free of her sleeves so that she could clutch her stomach. Katara politely waited for the laughter to die out before showing her confused expression.

"It's okay, really," Jin reassured her, waving a hand. "I should have known that one of you was going to be his girlfriend." Katara breathed a sigh of relief was she saw that Jin was genuinely smiling at her. Apparently she was brave enough to face the facts. Then suddenly, Jin had a sly smile and look in her eyes that Katara couldn't quite pin down. "Although I gotta say, with the speed you moved at, I thought you were going to tell me that you were his girlfriend."

"What?" Katara immediately felt her cheeks fill with heat, she could hope her blush wasn't as obvious on the outside. "Me? And Zuko? No. No way. That's just…" Impossible? Ridiculous? Absurd?

"No need to go so red, Katara. I understand how you feel," Jin said, taking Katara's hands in her own. "But don't worry! We're both young. There's plenty of time for both us to move on from Zuko and find happiness with someone else."

"But I'm not-" Katara started to protest against Jin's assumption, but was interrupted by the rumbling of the ground as a giant flying bison landed a few feet away from them. Appa made a low rumbling sound in his throat, letting Aang jump down from the saddle before launching into the sky again. Momo sat on the Avatar's shoulder, happily chattering away.

"Katara! I thought that was you!"

"Aang!" Katara called more enthusiastically than usual. She pulled free from Jin to run over and envelop him in a hug. She let him return the embrace for a moment, before pulling away to introduce him. "Aang, this is Jin. Jin, this is Aang. The Avatar."

"Jin? THE Jin?" Aang asked excitedly, jumping forward to say hello. "Nice to meet you, Jin!" The confusion at being referred to as 'The Jin' was clear on her face, but instead of asking, she bowed her head once more.

"It's an honour to meet you, Aang," she said , smiling again. "Perhaps I can talk to you some more when I come to the shop for some tea tomorrow."

"Of course!"

"Until then," Jin replied, waving at them as she moved to leave. "Goodbye Aang. Goodbye Katara." Jin paused to look pointedly at the other girl. "I'll definitely talk to you more tomorrow!" She grinned, before running off down the street, leaving Katara stunned and unsure of what to say. At least until Aang tugged on her sleeve.

"Oh Aang. What did the Earth King say?" she asked, preferring to distract him now instead of letting him get curious as to what she and Jin were talking about.

"We've got a meeting with him tomorrow," Aang told her cheerfully. "Come on, let's go tell the others." Katara nodded and walked him back to the Jasmine Dragon, trying her best not to take Jin's misguided beliefs seriously. There was just no way she could feel that way for Zuko. Was there?

Aang and Katara entered the shop just in time to hear Sokka complaining that he was bored.

"Hey, General Iroh! Do you have any ink and parchment I can use?"

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry about the short chapter guys! But hey! Update! And Jin! I personally love Jin as a character and there was no way I wasn't going to include her. Not to worry though! She wont get in the way of Zutara. Also, when I originally planned this chapter and wrote chapter three, I didn't know about the comic where Jin met Mai. So for the sake on continuity in my fic, I'll be ignoring that...


	6. Arguments and Conversations

**A/N:** Just in case anyone didn't realise, the end of the last chapter was supposed to be leading up to the final scene in the show, hence Sokka's need for ink and parchment. I wasn't going to write out the actual scene, because that's too much Kataang and I'm pretty certain you all know how that scene plays out anyway. More comments at the bottom.

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender, any of the characters here or ****the scenes referenced**, especially the dream contents. I'm not that awesome

* * *

Katara nibbled her lip nervously. She was standing back at the sidelines, behind her friend. Zuko and Azula were kneeling at either end of the courtyard, facing away from each other. In unison, they both stood and turned to face each other. Azula pulled off her Fire Lord cloak and lazily dropped it to the ground next to her.

"I'm sorry it has to end this way, brother."

"No you're not." Zuko was already in his stance, ready to move. Azula only acknowledged his reply by moving into her own stance, turning and launching her blue flames at him. He countered with his own fire. The two meeting in the middle and exploding upwards, making a wall of blue red flames between them. The fire cleared and Azula was already launching herself forwards with fiery kicks.

Katara watched silently, holding her breath. Her fists clenched tightly shut. She wanted to intervene. To help Zuko and tip the scale in their favour, but he had asked her to stay back out of respect for her safety and she would honour his words for now.

The Prince countered his sister's every move with this own attack. Neither seeming to gain the advantage. Where Azula had once been the fire bending prodigy, they were now evenly matched. They both punched streams of fire at each other, the two flames hit and veered of so that neither combatant was hurt. However Zuko's footing seemed to be slipping and as the flames cleared once more, Azula had already launched herself into the air, flipping over and bringing a tower of flames crashing down on her brother.

"Zuko! NOOOO!" Katara ran forward. If she got to him in time, she could heal him and they could defeat Azula together. Instead another set of flames came crashing down on her. She was so focused on Zuko that she hadn't had enough time to react. Through the flames she could see his limp body on the ground. The smoke engulfed her. She couldn't breathe.

* * *

Katara gasped as she jolted up into a sitting position. She took a deep breath as if really had been choking for air moments ago. It took gripping her familiar blue sleeping bag for her to realise that she'd had another nightmare and that she was now safely awake in reality. Remembering the close sleeping quarters, she glanced around worriedly, hoping she hadn't woken anyone. Toph, who was sleeping right next to her, rolled over so that she wasn't facing Katara, so it was possible that the earth bender was awake. Otherwise, no one was stirring. The whole gang was camped in the back room, resting in a variety of sleeping bags and blankets. She scanned over every sleeping lump, desperately searching for the one she really need to see.

In the dim early morning light, she could just make him out. Zuko was stretched along the far wall, under a deep red blanket and using someone's bag as pillow. Perhaps it was the limited space, but he wasn't moving in his sleep tonight. It filled Katara with irrational fear, tempting her to tiptoe through everyone and nudge him just to see if he would wake or at least move. It took all of her self control to force herself to lie back down and stay put. She took a deep breath and started her mantra that she had hoped she would never need again.

"The dreams always tell lies…" she muttered it under her breath, hoping that it wouldn't wake anyone, and stared up at the ceiling, trying to focus on what was going on. Why had she had another nightmare? She had optimistically thought that they had stopped plaguing her. Nothing had happened to make her suddenly start dreaming about Zuko dying again. After Jin had left, everyone had been socialising inside the tea shop. She had even managed a conversation with Mai. Sokka had at least attempted painting them all, even if accuracy was left as something to be desired. She had gone outside with Aang and finally accepted his feelings for her. They had all closed up shop and had dinner together. Aang had told them about his talk with the Earth King. Then they had all called it a night and gone to sleep. There was absolutely nothing to suggest that she should be dreaming about the Agni Kai again. Nothing.

Toph rolled over again, making the chant that Katara had continued while thinking fall silent. She didn't dare glance at her friend to see if she was awake. Instead, she rolled away from Toph so that she faced the wall, pretending to sleep. She'd wait for the others to wake before she got up herself, but there was no way she was going back to sleep now.

* * *

"I've had enough! WHY DO YOU KEEP STARING AT HIM?" Everyone in the room froze. They had all been sat in a circle on the floor, eating the soup that Katara had made for breakfast. Iroh had already served the tea to accompany their food, so was sat with everyone, filling them in on what the White Lotus had been planning to do while he was absent from Ba Sing Se. Aang, Zuko, Sokka, Suki and Toph had all been listening intently, freeing their mouths for eating. Now Mai had suddenly dropped her bowl and jumped to her feet, her rage clear on her usually emotionless face, and even Sokka had paused with his spoon halfway to his open mouth. "WELL?" No one said anything, unsure of who she was talking to, until Katara's face flushed and her eyes dropped down to stare at the bowl in her hands.

She had been staring at Zuko. Not that she had meant to, but every time she turned away from him she was hit with the sudden fear that he was hurt. In the end, it was simply easier to watch him from across the circle and observe him. The gentle rise and fall of his chest as he breathed, the way his dark hair softly swung with every turn of his head, the way he would sometimes pause and look at his food before he ate it, as if he'd only just realised what it was. Every little thing that told her that he was alive and well. That she had no reason to be panicking like she was.

Of course Mai spotted her. The Fire Nation girl was sat right next to Zuko, more directly opposite Katara than he was. Who knew how many times she had glanced up from her food to spot the water bender eyeing her boyfriend, before she snapped. The same water bender who had started a relationship with the Avatar just the night before. No wonder she was so mad now. It didn't help that Katara was failing to answer her question.

"Mai… Maybe you should sit down…" Zuko said rather hesitantly, only earning himself a vicious glare from her.

"NO!" She answered angrily, turning to Katara and thrusting her hand back to point at Zuko. "Answer me Katara! Why do you keep staring at him? You've been doing it ALL MORNING!" The volume of her rage waved up and down, leaving Katara to simply look up at her, mouth gaping open as she desperately searched her mind for some sort of acceptable excuse.

"Calm down, Dragon face." This calm statement came from Toph. Unlike everyone else, she hadn't been paying much attention to Mai. Instead she had been focusing on Katara's heartbeat, which had been varying it's pace since the earth bender had heard her wake in the early morning. Now she had confirmed why her friend had pretended to sleep despite being awake hours before everyone else. "She's probably only staring at him because she had another nightmare about him dying."

"WHAT?" came the chorused cry of the rest of the group, each of them surprised at this revelation.

"Toph!" Katara protested. She hadn't asked Toph to keep her nightmares a secret, but only because she hadn't thought that she needed to. It was embarrassing to have such paranoid dreams. She'd thought that was easily understandable. "What are you-"

"Sorry Sweetness, but you're going to have to tell them the truth," Toph interrupted. "Otherwise everyone is going to think you have some sort of secret, creepy crush on Zuko. And you wouldn't want that, would you?" Her words were in a matter-of-fact tone and she simply returned to her breakfast when she finished speaking, as if she knew she wouldn't have to prepare an argument. Katara sighed.

"I've been having nightmares about the final battle with Azula," she said finally, her gaze falling to the ground. She could feel six pairs of eyes on her and she refused to meet any them. "They keep changing, but in each one… I can't save Zuko and he dies… Sometimes we both do…" When she was met with silence, Katara risked a glance up at the others.

Sokka and Suki were giving each other concerned glances. Both unsure of what to say. Iroh was thoughtfully running his hand over his long goatee. His face was unreadable, but it seemed he was already forming theories in his mind. Zuko himself was opening and closing his mouth like a fish. He'd known that what happened at the Agni Kai had been bothering her, but he'd never suspected that she'd been having nightmares. Mai simply unclenched her fists and sat back down. Perhaps she felt guilty for bringing this topic to light. Perhaps she simply didn't know how to feel about it. Aang just looked confused.

"That's ridiculous, Katara," he said, as if she didn't know that already. "Neither of you died that day. In fact, you single-handedly saved Zuko. You're a he-"

"I am not the hero you all think I am!" Katara cut him off angrily, jumping to her feet in a similar fashion to Mai's earlier outburst. "You think you know everything, but you weren't there! You don't how close we were to losing!" She was shaking. She knew Aang had only intended on cheering her up, on reassuring her that her worries weren't necessary, but it just made her so mad. She could see that everyone was surprised by her outbursts, except Toph who was a little too passive. Katara's now angry glare turned to Zuko. He knew she felt guilty about what happened. He knew that she questioned his silence. Yet he was still just sat there, saying nothing. Even now. When he knew what it was doing to her. Letting out a loud grunt of frustration, she turned away from the group.

"I'll meet you all outside of the palace, when it's time to go meet the Earth King!" Katara yelled, as she marched out of the door, through the yet-to-be-opened tea shop and out onto the street.

* * *

Okay. Now that was dumb. Katara was slouched over as she walked, just barely moving out of the way of the people she passed. She had calmed down a lot after walking all over the upper ring, coming to the realisation that she had probably left her friends feeling very confused, possibly hurt. Not only that, but she was now missing out on the promised girls day out. She really had been looking forward to it. What if Suki and Toph decided to go without her? Not that she'd blame them. Not after the way she'd stormed out.

She blamed Zuko. Simple as that. If he hadn't made her out to be the hero and thrown this guilt over her, she would have been just fine. No. Before that. If he hadn't risked his life saving her, then she would have nothing to feel guilty about. That was it. It was all his fault. When she saw him again, she was going to give him a piece of her mind! Just like she had at the Western Air Temple.

Katara sighed. He didn't deserve that. It was her that couldn't seem to move on. The war was over. She was supposed to be starting her new life. She was supposed to be with Aang and be happy and help the peace continue. Why couldn't she let go of just one little battle? Her thoughts and questions plagued her mind as she walked. So it wasn't until he was waving at her that she spotted the old man dressed in familiar blue water tribe clothes.

"Master Pakku!" She addressed him formally, but it was with great enthusiasm that she ran over, flung her arms around his waist and gave him a tight hug. One that the he returned with a smile. They were once master and student, but since he'd reunited with and married her Gran-Gran, they were family.

"Good to see you, Katara," Pakku said, stepping back from the hug. He glanced over and something about how she looked must have betrayed her, because he suddenly gave her a look of uncertain concern. "Why are you wandering around alone? King Kuei had us under the impression that you and your friends had plans for this morning."

"We did…" Katara replied with a sigh, turning her gaze away. "But I sort of stormed out on them… It's a long story." Glancing up at him, she noticed his raised questioning eyebrow, which became a frown when she failed to continue.

"Well it seems we both have the time to spare before the meeting. And your Gran-Gran would never let me hear the end of it if I allowed you to wallow in your self pity," he said thoughtfully. "Walk with me?" Katara nodded and Pakku immediately set off at a brisk pace. His arms were crossed behind his back and he looked straight ahead, never once turning to glance at Katara or opening his mouth to speak to her. She was forced to dwell in this silence, itching for some kind of conversation to take hold, until finally she caved in.

So she told him. About the nightmares. About how she watched Zuko. About Mai's outburst. About her admittance of her troubles. About Aang's attempt at reassurance. About how she had finally snapped. She just kept talking, expressing her every thought and feeling. Pakku never said a word, but she could feel him listening to her. It encouraged her to continue, barely stopping for breath, waving her arms around in a Sokka-like fashion.

"I know I shouldn't have yelled at them," Katara admitted, rubbing her arm. "I just couldn't take it any more. I felt like I was going to explode."

"I am familiar with your temper," Pakku replied, finally breaking his silence. Katara gave a small nervous smile, though he never looked to see it. She remembered how she had challenged him at the North Pole. Looking back, she felt a little guilty. As right as she was to stand up for her beliefs and her birth right to learn water bending, it had been more than a little disrespectful of her to go against the tribe's customs like that. She was about to apologise when Pakku interrupted her. "Although it seems a little misplaced… unless you're not telling me something… Did something else happen at the Agni Kai?"

Before her eyes, Katara saw the lightning again. The sparks being blocked by Zuko's body as he dove in front of her. His shout echoed in her mind. She could still see how he convulsed in pain as he hit the ground.

"Yes… But you can't tell anyone! Because, for some reason, Zuko didn't tell the others how it really happened…" Katara paused, waiting for the slight but firm nod of Pakku's head before she continued. "When Zuko got hit with lightning… it wasn't because he slipped up. It was my fault… Azula was aiming at me. Zuko jumped in the way. He- He saved me." The words came out slow, hesitant, but as soon as she finished, Katara felt as if a great weight had been lifted. She had been harbouring this secret, her guilt, her pain. Now that she had shared it with a single person, she felt that little bit less burdened. There was a long pause as Pakku considered the words of his best student.

"It is still true that you defeated Azula and healed Fire Lord Zuko?" he asked eventually. Just as with his previous queries, he did not turn his head to look at Katara, but he did see her nod out of the corner of his eye. "Then regardless of what the others know, you have already paid your debt to him. Perhaps guilt is not what is truly bothering you." And with that, he only quickened his pace, leaving her lagging behind.

Katara just frowned in response. Not guilt? Then what else could it possibly be?

* * *

**A/N: **You all thought I'd forgotten all about the nightmares, didn't you? Since I was only ever referring to them. There's supposed to be a pattern to when she has them though. Hopefully it will become clear as we go on. Just so we're clear, I am in no way intending to make Mai the "bad guy", which is why I had her back down when she heard the explanation. I like Mai, even if she doesn't like me and gives me writers block. What do you think of Pakku? I get the feeling I made him too soft, but he did get a little gentler after he found out their relation to Kanna... Bah! Let me know what you think. Hope you liked this one and look forward to the next chapter!


	7. Apologies

**A/N: **I'm sorry for taking so long to update, but I'm now making it up to you!(I hope, although it's quality that matters, not quantity.) The following two chapters were originally planned to be one, but I got carried away and went into more detail in places than I originally meant to. So instead of giving you one super long chapter of doom, I've separated it into two. However I am uploading them both now, so it's up to you whether or not you read them in one sitting. And keep those reviews coming guys! I really appreciate them! Extra special thanks to Kimberly T for her advice on Pakku after the last chapter. I'm still getting used to his character, so the help was greatly welcomed.

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender, any of the characters here or ****the scenes **referenced.

* * *

Pakku didn't provide much help for the rest of the morning. Katara kept talking about her nightmares, hoping he would explain a deeper meaning in his earlier words, which he had shrugged off as a simple passing thought. Eventually, he had snapped and told her that if she wanted an interpretation, she should talk to someone like General Iroh. She hadn't responded to that. Not once had she considered telling Iroh that she was having nightmares about his nephew dying, even though he apparently gave good advice. It just didn't seem right. Deciding not to acknowledge Pakku's suggestion, she turned the subject to water bending. A subject in which they could both show an interest.

Katara told him first about the benders from Foggy Swamp. Their different style and how one of them used the water in the plants to control them. Hesitantly, she then told him about Hama. How she had been taught to draw water from every source, the plants, the air, even her own body. It was interesting subject for a water bender who was rarely away from a large source of water. Ice and snow were obviously common in the North and South Poles. She left out the part about blood bending though. She was hoping that particular art would die when she did. Luckily, Pakku didn't ask what had happened to Hama, being more interested in what she had taught Katara than the person herself. If he sensed she was holding back, he showed no sign of it.

The still young water bender would have been quite happy to continue like that for the rest of the day, but Pakku soon abruptly changed direction and stated it was time to head to the palace. She trailed behind him now. Unsure of how to face her friends. She felt guilty about what happened, but -however irrational it may be- her anger was still bubbling under her skin, making her reluctant to be the one to apologise. The rest of the gang, except for Iroh who must have already gone inside, was already waiting outside the palace when they arrived. Thankfully she was spared the trouble of having to speak first as Sokka spotted Pakku.

"Grand-Pakku!" he called as he ran over -no easy feat, as he hobbled with his leg and winced at every other step- with his arms stretched out, clearly determined to get a hug this time. Instead his forehead met with the palm of Pakku's hand, as the master water bender held him away at arms length. Sokka struggled to push forward, waving his arms in front of him in an attempt to reach Pakku. For those who knew Sokka, it was amusing to see him forget all of his warrior training in his quest to get a hug from the old man. Although it wasn't too surprising.

"No," Pakku said simply, just as Sokka gave up and let his arms fall limply. "Just Pakku." The old man pushed Sokka back a step before letting his hand drop to his side. The young Water Tribe warrior gave out a disappointed groan as the rest of the group walked over, Suki giving him a gentle pat on the back. Katara scanned over their faces. No one looked particularly angry with her, although Zuko was determinedly avoiding her gaze. Her eyes finally landed on Aang, who gazed at her with an uncertain sadness. It suddenly reminded her of when she stole that water bending scroll from the pirates. She had snapped out of jealousy at his natural talent and his bottom lip had quivered like he was going to cry. There was no threat of tears now, but just like then, her heart softened and her anger slipped away.

"Oh Aang!" she cried, throwing her arms over his shoulders. "I am so sorry! I shouldn't have yelled like that! I was just upset and I haven't been sleeping…" She stopped explaining herself when she felt his arms tighten around her waist, one hand rubbing her back in reassurance.

"It's okay Katara. You don't need to apologise," he told her. Katara pulled away and saw that he already had a pleasant smile on his face. She returned his expression before turning to Suki and Toph, the latter not looking at all interested in the little love fest.

"I'm sorry I didn't come with you to get makeovers today…" she apologised, softly rubbing her arm, her gaze turned away.

"That's okay, Katara," Suki replied with a simple wave of her hand. "We can all go some other time. I still really want to try those mud baths." The word 'still' made Katara lift her eyes to meet those of the Kyoshi Warrior, who was back in full warrior's garb, face paint and all.

"You didn't go without me?" Katara, a little surprised.

"Of course not, silly!" Suki laughed. "Why on earth would we do that?" A grin split across her face as Katara grabbed both Suki and Toph, pulling them into a tight hug.

"You guys are great! I'm sorry! I promise we'll go before we leave Ba Sing Se."

"Yeah yeah, we're all sorry. We love each other. Happy fuzzy feelings all around. Can we please move on now?" Toph said, freeing herself from Katara's grip and pushing away from her. She had not expected to be included in the happy reunion, since she hadn't really cared about going to the spa. Well, maybe a little. Suki and Katara laughed as they too pulled out of the hug, amused by the little earth bender's reaction.

"Now that you've all done your apologies," Pakku said. "I will go inform King Kuei that you are all here."

With that, he walked to the huge palace doors, pushing just one open and slipping inside. With a sigh, Katara moved past Suki and Toph over to Mai, who had been standing slightly back from the group, closest to Zuko.

"Not all done…" she said quietly, gulping before she spoke again. "I'm sorry for making you frustrated this morning, Mai. The nightmares feel so real and I was just scared… and… I'm really sorry…" Katara watched the other girl's face very closely for some sort of reaction. At first, the smallest hint of surprise flashed across Mai's face. Perhaps she had not expected an apology. Then her usual blank expression was back in place just as quickly.

"Whatever. I don't care," Mai replied, turning her eyes away from the water bender and giving a slight shrug of her shoulders. "Don't make a big deal out of it." Despite what she had just been told, Katara broke into another big smile and flung her arms around Mai's shoulders. At that moment, she had decided. Their past did not matter. She considered Mai to be her friend. Although Katara did not see it, the surprise was evident on Mai's face this time. The only other girl that had ever hugged her before was Ty Lee and she was a childhood friend. To say she was wasn't sure how to react was an understatement.

Feeling Mai awkwardly trying to step out of the hug, Katara let her go and turned to stand next to her. Which brought her face to face with Zuko, who was no longer avoiding her gaze and was actually watching her rather… expectantly. Was he expecting an apology too? For what? It was his fault she had yelled at everyone, that she needed to say sorry to them all in the first place! His fault that- Why did he have to keep looking at her like that? Katara folded her arms across her chest and sighed.

"I apologise for glaring at you too, Zuko," she told him rather formally, her eyes looking to the side instead of meeting his. "I probably made you feel awkward this morni-" The water bender gave a small yelp as she was cut off by Zuko grabbing her by the shoulder and pulling her into a hug of his own, holding her tightly against him. What was he doing? Mai and Aang were stood right there! This would look suspicious after this morning, wouldn't it? But why did she care? They were friends. Aang had seen them hug before. It was nothing to worry about. And if he thought a hug would make her less mad at him, he was dead wrong.

"I'm sorry too." The words were so quiet and soft against her ear, that Katara almost didn't hear them. They sent a shiver down her spine and made her lift her arms up and around his shoulders to return the hug. At least he understood that he had something to apologise for. Even though she was putting some of the blame on him that actually belonged to herself. They slowly pulled apart and Katara once again felt a warmth lingering on her skin that hadn't been there before. She looked up at him and a small smile appeared on his lips. "I think you got everyone now, Katara."

"What about me?" Sokka interrupted, making Katara turn and glare at him, hands balled into fists and thrown down stubbornly at her sides.

"No more apologies!" she snapped, making her brother pout. She never apologised to him. The water bender had to stifle a laugh when she caught a chuckle coming from Aang though. He was most likely amused by the same, very similar, memory that had just popped into her head.

There was a loud creak as the palace doors opened wide. Three people stepped out. The two stood at the back were the Royal Earthbender Guards, both dressed in their green armour, with the green feathers at the tops of their helmets. In front of them, in the middle, was a woman dressed in yellow and green robes, a green sash with the Earth Kingdom symbol on it looped around her neck and a horizontal green ornament was placed atop her head in her black hair that fell down straight, just below her shoulders. The group watched them approach in silence.

"Please allow me to officially welcome you back to Ba Sing Se, Avatar Aang and friends," the woman said in an all too familiar voice as she bowed her head to them. It wasn't until she looked back up and smiled that Sokka gave a loud over-exaggerated gasp and pointed an accusing finger at her.

"It's Joo Dee! She's with Long Feng. SOMEONE ARREST HER!" There was a moment where nobody else moved and Sokka looked back and forth between the group, the guards and the woman that he was still pointing at. She nervously looked to one side, the smile slipping from her face. There was a look of deep regret, which made Sokka drop his arm. Katara and Aang quickly exchanged glances, eyebrows raised. Toph had her arms crossed, but her feet were spread apart, planted firmly on the ground. Suki and Zuko looked confused and Mai, once again, looked uninterested.

"Actually… my name isn't Joo Dee…" the woman said finally. "It's Zhen. And I'm no longer in allegiance with Long Feng. The Dai Li were ordered to reverse the hypnosis performed on me and the other women. I stood trial under the judgement of King Kuei and the White Lotus and was pardoned of my crimes as Joo Dee." The woman, Zhen, took a moment to breathe and bow down low. "I apologise for any harm I may have done during your last stay here."

"Wait… wait, wait. The Dai Li are here?" Sokka asked, momentarily forgetting how the woman and her creepy smile had prevented them making progress in their quest to find Appa and tell the Earth King about the eclipse in the favour of a stronger concern. He looked rather angry. Which he had a right to be, the Dai Li had betrayed the Earth Kingdom, joined Azula and fought against them on the Day of Black Sun. They weren't exactly trustworthy.

"Yes. They were banished from the Fire Nation, so they returned here and pledged their allegiance to the Earth King and the White Lotus. They have proved quite helpful," Zhen explained, although perhaps not thoroughly enough for they gang. Everyone turned their eyes to Toph.

"She's not lying," Toph stated, answering their unasked questions. Even so, most of them still looked uncertain. Perhaps sensing this, Zhen motioned towards the palace doors.

"I'm sure King Kuei will explain further. He is ready to see you now."

* * *

Katara had expected them to be taken to the throne room, so she was surprised when they left the main corridor to go down a smaller one. The room they entered was quite elongated and the water bender suspected that it was built that way to allow for the long table that the member of the White Lotus were all sat around. General Iroh, King Bumi, Master Piando, Jeong Jeong and Master Pakku all welcomed the group will warm smile. Pakku had evidently found the time to change into his own White Lotus uniform, like the other members were all wearing. At the end of the room, King Kuei was sat cross legged in the middle of a raised platform, with his pet bear, Bosco, curled up on his right. There was a space on his left, which he offered to Aang, who accepted with a nod of his head. Behind her, Katara felt Zuko shiver, making her turn and frown at him. She hadn't realised that she'd taken notice of the fact, but Zuko never shivered. He didn't say anything however, simply taking one of the empty seats at the table. Once everyone was seated, the meeting began.

At Sokka's demand for an explanation, the issue of the Dai Li was addressed first. It turned out that although the Dai Li really had been banished from the Fire Nation and returned to Ba Sing Se, they had not been given any true power within the city. Currently their tasks included undoing the harm they had caused the citizen. Everyone that had been hypnotised had had the process reversed, at least in the cases where it was safe to do so. The passage to the hidden rooms under Lake Loagai was rebuilt, so that the King and the Order of White Lotus could inspect them and recover any evidence. After which, they were destroyed completely. Every Dai Li agent was put on trial individually. Those that had shown no remorse had been imprisoned in metal cells and were awaiting a decision on punishment. Those that could be trusted had been split from all of their former team mates and placed in different positions in the city. Some joined the Terra Team, some joined the Royal Guard and the rest were given smaller tasks, such as pushing the trams between the outer and inner walls. Wherever they were, their new team mates would be keeping an eye on them. The Dai Li group would later be re-established to help re-build the city and encourage true Earth Kingdom culture. Whether any of the original agents would make it back into the group remained to be seen.

The topic then moved on to life in Ba Sing Se. The people were returning to their normal lives now that the city was no longer occupied by the Fire Nation. Although the White Lotus were working on lessening the gap between the classes. While it was true that through hard work citizens could rise from the lower ring to the middle ring and on to the upper ring, they wished to make life less difficult on those who could not. Iroh explained how good men had to resort to crime just to get through each day. They needed to raise the standard of living, so that would no longer be an option. They were discussing systems that could be put in place to support the lower class. With Long Feng imprisoned, they had found that a large portion of the royal funds had been going into his secret work. Now that gold could be put to good use.

Finally they moved onto international matters. Each member of the White Lotus took responsibility of explaining the situations of their own nations. Iroh and Piando spoke for the Fire Nation, the lack of jobs for the returning soldiers, the issues the colonists faced with Earth Kingdom citizens who wanted their land back and the sudden lack of incoming trade. Jeong Jeong -being more at home in the Earth Kingdom as a deserter of the Fire Nation army- and Bumi spoke for the Earth Kingdom, the rebuilding needed in Omashu and smaller towns and villages, the refugees that required homes and the anger of the people towards the Fire Nation. Pakku spoke for both the Northern and Southern Water Tribes, the formers suggestion of opening new trading routes, the latter's needs for rebuilding, materials and provisions and the loss of their people in the Southern Raids. With no one else to represent them, Aang spoke for the Air temple, the refugees that had taken up residence in the Northern Air Temple, the other three that were open to occupation and the need to preserve what was left of the culture and the relics of the Air Nomads.

Katara listened carefully to each of the explanations. She had known that defeating Ozai was less than half of Aang's- of their work, but she hadn't considered exactly how much of the world would need them. Next to her, she felt Zuko tense up every time he heard of a nations problems that was a direct result of the Fire Nation and the war. She glanced at him worriedly every now and then, tempted to do something to reassure him. Squeeze his hand, pat his shoulder or show him a smile. But Mai was sat on his other side, surely it was her place to do that, not the water bender's. So instead she focused on the conversation. Now that the problems of the nations were all on the table, King Kuei raised his hand for silence.

"While it is good for us all to be aware of these matters, perhaps they are best left for the world meeting in the Fire Nation?" he said, looking around the table, his eyes finally landing on Pakku. "You mentioned in a previous meeting that Chief Arnook wished to represent the Northern Tribe and that Chief Hakoda or even Lady Kanna would make better representatives of the Southern Tribe than you." Pakku inclined his head in confirmation and Katara raised her eyebrows and exchanged looks with Sokka across the table. Lady Kanna? They wanted her Gran Gran to be a representative? Did they know what they were getting themselves into? It was no mystery where Katara got her stubbornness and strong ideals.

"Chief Hakoda would be an ideal choice, but given that he has been away from the Tribe during the war, Lady Kanna would be the most understanding of their current situation," Pakku explained, as if had been reading Katara's thoughts. "I was only able to spend a short time there before General Iroh called me here to retake the city and most of that time was spent on more… personal matters." Katara stifled a giggle. So a lot of Pakku's time had been devoted to chasing after Gran Gran? She could only imagine how much Gran Gran had made Pakku work before she agreed to marry him. It had to be a lot to make him suddenly humble enough to turn down an important position, although he did have enough responsibilities already. Everyone looked to Katara with a confused look, except Sokka who shared her amused expression. She shook her head and waved at them to continue.

"Well… Until the world meeting, I'd like to specifically discuss the issues between my Kingdom and the Fire Nation," King Kuei explained, turning his gaze to Zuko, who immediately straightened up and focused his attention on the Earth King, almost making Katara giggle again, although she wasn't sure why. "During my travels, I personally met with horrors that my people faced each day, the oppression they have suffered, the fear of your soldiers and the poverty they have been forced into." Katara's gaze turned to King Kuei. It seemed his travels had changed him. He was no longer the free-spirited, happy and somewhat dense King that Long Feng had easily used as a puppet. There was a sombre look in his eyes and the weight of his responsibility and his choice to shoulder it was clear in the way he held himself. Never slouching, never eagerly leaning forward in his seat. War easily changed a man. "Even so, I never understood the full weight of the problems until Jeong Jeong found me and brought me back here to restore the throne to me. We have a lot to work through, Fire Lord Zuko."

Looking at him again, Katara could see the shame in Zuko's eyes. He had travelled through the Earth Kingdom. He knew exactly what the king was referring too. His decision had helped bring that suffering into Ba Sing Se. Katara saw him clench his fists under the table and had to once again resist the temptation to reach out to him. Luckily, he got to his feet before she could give in.

"May I offer my apologies on behalf of my nation, King Kuei?" Zuko said formally, bowing his head and bringing his fist to just below his palm in a respectful Fire Nation style.

"We have already accepted the apologies of your Nation, Fire Lord Zuko. That is why you are here." Although his tone was still formal and cold, King Kuei's expression softened. The happy and trusting King was still a part of him.

"Then please accept my personal apologies," Zuko amended. "I was here during the fall of Ba Sing Se. I could have chosen to fight against my sister and try to stop it. I did not. It is one of my deepest regrets." Both General Iroh and Katara smiled at Zuko then. Katara assumed that Iroh had received a personal apology for what had happened in the catacombs, just as she had. Now he was bowing and apologising to the Earth King. Something that the Zuko of a year ago never would have done. Something moved in her chest, she did not think she could ever feel a deeper respect for her friend than she did at that moment.

"Apology accepted. You may take your seat," King Kuei told him, perhaps surprised by Zuko's apology. He'd never met Zuko before, so it was possible that he hadn't known about his time in the city. "But your sister was the young lady who organised the coup? May I ask where she is now?"

"She is imprisoned," Zuko informed him as he took his seat. "Katara and I defeated her on the day of the comet…" He hesitated, glancing sideways at Katara. For the first time, no one was jumping to sing her praises. Perhaps it was a good thing she had snapped that morning after all. Still, she didn't want anyone acting uncomfortable because of it. She reached over and put a reassuring hand on Zuko's shoulder, before addressing King Kuei.

"She is no longer of sound mind, your Highness. If she ever was at all," Katara explained. "Even after we defeated her, she was screaming and breathing fire. It took half a dozen men to contain her and take her to her cell." She watched the king carefully, wondering what he was thinking. If it was her land Azula had conquered, what would she want? "I do not think it would be wise to transport her anywhere. A sane and calculating Azula was trouble enough. I dare not imagine what she would do in her current state." Zuko put his hand on hers and squeezed it thankfully, which she took as a sign to remove her hand from his shoulder, placing it in her lap instead.

"That is a shame… My people have been demanding justice. If it were possible, I would ask that she stand trial here," King Kuei replied, thoughtfully rubbing his chin. "If her circumstances change, you would inform me?" It was hard to tell if he meant his words as a question, but Zuko answered anyway.

"Of course, King Kuei. I wouldn't hesitate. Your people deserve their justice. Azula deserves her punishment."

"Until then, it would be alright for me to inform my people of the current situation?" Again, his words did not sound quite like a question. Zuko gave a firm nod.

"Of course."

"And what of this young lady?" King Kuei asked, suddenly moving his gaze to Mai. "You were one of the girls pretending to be a Kyoshi Warrior, were you not?" Mai did not answer, her eyes boring into him, as if she hadn't realised what he was talking about. It was possible that she'd gotten bored and stopped paying attention. General Iroh opened his mouth to explain, but it was Suki that jumped to her feet, leaning forward, her hands on the table.

"She has redeemed herself, your highness," she insisted. "She betrayed Azula, saving a number of us -myself included- from being trapped in a Fire Nation prison."

"Aaaaand from being dropped into a boiling lake that would have burned us to death before we had the chance to drown," Sokka added, raising his hand as if he were pointing up at the ceiling. Katara's eyebrows shot up. She hadn't know about that. This was when Sokka and Zuko went to the Boiling Rock? No one told her that she owed the rescue of her family and friends to Mai. However, it seemed that she and King Kuei were the only ones that were surprised. Although Mai was staring across at both Suki and Sokka. She certainly hadn't expected them to defend her. King Kuei frowned and turned in his seat to look at Aang, who nodded.

"It's true, Mai was left behind and imprisoned because of it," he explained. "Considering it was Azula she had betrayed, she was lucky that she didn't receive a worse punishment." So Aang knew too? Katara moved her gaze over to Toph, hoping the young earth bender was just as surprised as she was. No. She was leaning on the table, resting her head on her hands, not reacting at all to the conversation. There was a moment of silence, until Zuko pointedly nudged Mai and gestured to the Earth King.

"I apologise for my previous actions here, Your Highness," Mai said, not getting to her feet to bow, but simply inclining her head forwards slightly. "I assure you my loyalty now lies with Fire Lord Zuko." Her rather plain apology was followed by a disgruntled roar from Bosco, who rolled onto his back with a paw on his stomach. The king reached over and pet the bear.

"I see. Your apology is accepted, but you will understand if we choose to keep a close eye on you," he said, now scratching his pet as Bosco leaned into his hand. "For now, we will call this meeting to a close. Bosco is getting hungry." As if to prove his point, the bear's stomach gave a loud rumble, which made the king lean over and start ruffling his fur affectionately with both hands. Some things never changed.

"But Kuei! You haven't told them about the party!" Aang protested, gesturing to the whole room with both arms. Although none of the White Lotus reacted to this news, everyone else snapped to attention. Sokka had jumped up and Suki's look of concern had turned into a wide smile. Toph lifted her head from her hands, listening intently. Katara leaned forward in her seat, glancing at Zuko and Mai next to her. Zuko was frowning, as if he wasn't sure what to think. Mai's expression was as blank as ever, but she at least seemed to be paying attention.

"Of course! How could I forget?" King Kuei laughed, letting his old child-like side shine through again. "Tomorrow night we will be holding a party at the palace. In celebration of the Avatar's return to Ba Sing Se and the beginning of international negotiations." Those who were already smiling suddenly sparkled with excitement. Katara even enthusiastically got to her feet.

"Really? We're having a party?"

"Of course!" King Bumi answered before anyone else could, his crazed toothy grin plastered on his face. "You kids deserve it!"

Finally. They were going to have some much needed fun.

* * *

**A/N:** Yes, a party. I have plans. If you thought Pakku was being too modest, that was intentional. It will be explained. A lot of references to 'The Waterbending Scroll' in there. None of it Zutara... I don't know how I managed that. For those of you that are interested, Joo Dee's new name is from Chinese _珍_ "precious, rare", _真_ "real, true" or _貞_ "chaste, pure"(according to behindthename .com ). I wanted to give her something with meanings that were completely opposite to what the Avatar Wikia says the possible meanings for 'Joo Dee' are.


	8. Not So Private Talks

**A/N: **Hope the political stuff didn't bore you... Anyway, on with the next chapter!

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender, any of the characters here or scenes referenced.**

* * *

As Iroh's old house was now being used as a makeshift headquarters for the White Lotus, everyone took up residence in the house that the gang had been provided with during their last visit. Thankfully someone had long since fixed the wall that Toph had broken down. Aang and Iroh had volunteered to fetch everyone's stuff from the tea shop. Admittedly, they took Appa, so there wasn't much effort on their part. Everyone else was supposed to clean up the house and get it ready, but 'everyone' ended up being Katara and Suki. Even then, the Kyoshi Warrior was often distracted by Sokka's antics. Zuko had tried helping, but somehow kept managing to get in Katara's way. Eventually she got frustrated and thrust a teapot at him, telling him that he'd better make the best tea she'd ever tasted. Muttering under his breath, he'd accepted the challenge and found himself a corner to work. Unsurprisingly, Mai was lounging by the window, complaining that she was bored. Toph had been pushed outside, because picking her toes clean inside was 'gross'.

Even though the house had apparently been prepared for them, Katara was hard at work. She watered the plants, fluffed and arranged the pillows and opened the windows to let in the fresh air. Much to Mai's annoyance as Katara shifted her out of the way of the front window.

"If you're that bored, Mai, why don't you help Suki start dinner?" Katara as she pulled away from the window and start fluffing the pillows where Mai had been sitting. Her newest friend frowned, her arms crossed, as if it were a difficult decision.

"Anything is better than just sitting here," she said finally, turning away from Katara and moving over to where the Kyoshi Warrior was pulling out some pans. She had changed clothes. Her warrior garb and face paint gone in favour of her Earth Kingdom robes from the previous day. Sokka was no longer distracting her, as he had been provided a cloth to clean his beloved boomerang with. Katara couldn't quite catch what Mai was saying to Suki, but she saw her bow Fire Nation style and heard Suki's chuckle.

"Oh Mai, you don't have to thank us for that!" she insisted, quite cheerfully. "And I think Sokka would consider you helping make dinner as thanks enough." She glanced over at her boyfriend, who had started paying attention, either at the mention of his name or dinner. Maybe both. She smiled and waved at him to ignore them, so he went back to polishing his boomerang, which was already starting to shine in the light. Zuko had glanced up when he realised Mai and Suki were talking, but immediately went back to his task, dumping out the contents of his teapot and starting over.

There was several loud thumps as six, huge, fuzzy feet and a large flat tail hit the ground, followed by a loud yell of "Watch who you're landing by, Twinkletoes!" Apparently, Toph hadn't appreciated the sudden vibrations in the earth.

"That's Appa!" Katara said, stating the obvious as she abandoned the pillow she'd been fluffing and raced outside. As she did, she found that three people had climbed down from Appa's back and were already greeting Toph. Aang was rubbing the back of his head as he apologised to her. Then he spotted Katara and grinned.

"Look who we found at the tea shop, Katara! It's JIN!" he announced excitedly, waving his arms at the Earth Kingdom girl. Katara laughed at his antics and then turned her warm smile to Jin. The young girl looked slightly green in the face and had the mixed look of fear and excitement that generally came with riding Appa for the first time. She'd tied her hair up today, so the windswept look was barely noticeable.

"Nice to see you again, Jin. Are you joining us for this evening?" she asked, hoping that she would stay. There were a few things she wanted to get straightened out with her. Thankfully, Jin nodded.

"Yes! Aang invited me!" she replied happily, before looking to the monk, perhaps for confirmation.

"I felt bad for not telling her that we might not be at the shop today," Aang explained. "It was really lucky that we caught her. She arrived just as we did."

"I see… well, Mai and Suki have started dinner, so we better get everything inside before it's done," Katara said, looking through the gap between where Aang and Jin were both stood. Iroh was fetching everyone's belongings out of Appa's saddle, as Toph raised and lowered the earth beneath him like a lift, so that he didn't have to keep climbing up and down. Spotting the sleeping bags and other bits of bedding, Katara grabbed Jin by the wrist. "Why don't you help me set up the sleeping arrangements!" Before Jin could answer, Katara dragged her to the bed supplies, thrust some blankets into her arms and then grabbed some for herself.

"Um… Lead the way…" Jin said finally as she regained her senses. The water bender had caught her by surprise. Katara led her into the house, leaving behind Aang, Iroh and Toph to collect the rest of the stuff. She paused to survey the room for the moment. Mai and Suki were mixing something in a bowl over a small flame, steam starting to rise from it. It seemed Suki was explaining something to the other girl and neither had looked up from what they were doing. Sokka was now laying on the cushions where Mai had been, spreading them out and making a mess, earning him a frown from Katara. A frown he didn't see as he was too busy staring absentmindedly at the ceiling. His hunger was probably getting to him. Zuko was still sat in his corner crossed-legged, resting his head in one hand, while he held the teapot in the other, heating it himself. Although it looked as if he was tiring of his challenge.

"Giving up, Zuko?" Katara teased, announcing their presence in the process. Zuko looked up to shoot a determined glare at her, but his eyes went wide as he spotted Jin standing next to her. Jin gave a small awkward wave. Awkward partly because she had to juggle the bedding she had in her arms and party because she could feel Mai glaring at her.

"I don't give up, Katara!" Zuko insisted, his amber eyes turning back towards her. "This will be the best tea you have ever tasted!" Katara laughed slightly at his determination. Did he really take everything that seriously? Whether it was capturing the Avatar or simply making tea?

"I'll be the judge of that," she told him firmly, before turning back to Jin and gesturing with a nod of her head. "The bedrooms are through this way." She led Jin further into the house, informing Suki and Mai as they passed that they would be having one more for dinner. Once in the first bedroom, meant for the guys, the two girls dumped all of the bedding into a heap on the floors. Kneeling down, Katara started pulling out different pillows, blankets and sleeping bags, explaining who each one belonged to. Jin listened to her explanations and helped her arrange the room.

"Aang usually slept on Appa, so he doesn't haven't much bedding," Katara explained, holding up a single pillow and a thin brown blanket before she lay them out on the floor. "We'll have get him some…"

"Aang's funny, isn't he?" Jin remarked, smoothing out the blanket with her hands. "You know, quite a few people have stopped me on the street since yesterday and asked how I know the Avatar or even… how he knows of me." She frowned, picking up the blue sleeping bag that she'd been told belonged to Sokka and unrolling it out on the floor, not far from where they had put Aang's bedding. "Do you know why he gets so excited about me?"

"Oh that!" Katara laughed, picking up one of Sokka's pillows and tossing it to Jin, before she started untangling a deep red blanket from her own sleeping bag. Frowning and wondering how they'd ended up like that in the first place. "Iroh mentioned you when we were on our way here. Zuko's reaction was…" She paused, searching for the right word. "Interesting? It peaked our curiosity anyway and he wasn't exactly forth coming with an explanation… Aha!" She had successfully pulled apart her sleeping bag and the red blanket, which turned out to be Zuko's. She moved to lay it out on the floor, closer to Aang's bedding than Sokka's, but still quite a fair distance from them both. It wasn't until she was done that she looked up at Jin and saw the shy expression.

"What… what did he tell you?" she asked rather hesitantly. Katara thought for a moment, busying herself with making Zuko's bed. He had many more layers of bedding than the others, courtesy of the servants that had packed for him back at the palace.

"He said that you went on one date," she answered finally. "And that it was nice. He didn't give any details." She watched Jin carefully, forgetting her work for the moment.

"I thought it was better than nice…" the other girl mumbled, staring down at the pillow she held in her hands. The blush that had appeared on her cheeks struck true to her words. "I had a wonderful time." Curiosity getting the better of her, Katara hurriedly finished Zuko's bed and moved to kneel down next to Jin.

"Can you tell me about it? I mean… where on earth do you take a guy like Zuko on a date?" she inquired with a gentle laugh. Katara had never had the chance to gossip like the older woman in her tribe did. She'd been the only girl around for a long time. Then Toph wasn't exactly girly enough for such things. If the earth bender liked anyone, she was keeping it to herself very well. Katara really didn't want to hear Suki gush about her brother and Mai was just… Mai. She couldn't imagine the young Fire Nation noble talking openly about her love life. So now was Katara's chance for such a conversation.

"We went to get something to eat first…" Jin said slowly. "But he wasn't very talkative. I asked all the questions." She titled her head to one side, showing a far away gaze as she remembered. "But afterwards… there's this fountain in the city… with all these lanterns around it. It looks so beautiful at night when it's all lit up… I took him there, but the lanterns hadn't been lit. I was so disappointed." Katara gave a saddened sigh, but frowned when she saw that Jin was still smiling gently. "He told me to close my eyes and not to peek… and when he let me open them again, the whole place was lit up! It was like magic!" Jin paused in her story to laugh and roll her eyes. "Of course, I know now that he must have lit them with fire bending. I don't know why I didn't think of it at the time… He was just standing there… The fountain was behind him and the lights reflected in the water. It was amazing."

Looking at the content smile on Jin's face as she remembered a scene that Katara couldn't even imagine, the water bender couldn't help but feel a little jealous. Why? Because she'd never been on a date like that before? Because she hadn't really been on any kind of date before? Yes, that had to be it. She would have to talk to Aang about going somewhere together.

"What happened next?" Katara asked, lowering her voice, as if speaking too loudly would ruin the mood that Jin had set. The other young girl pulled the pillow up to her face, so that her eyes shyly peeked over it.

"I kissed him…" The water bender felt her mouth fall open at those words and she stayed like that as she just stared at Jin, who had turned bright red. She kissed him? So that's what Zuko had been keeping from them! For some reason, Katara immediately found herself curious as to what it was like. Aang had kissed her a number of times and it was nice, but she didn't remember ever turning that shade of red just from thinking about it. As she opened her mouth to ask, there was a loud bang and the sounds of footsteps moving hurriedly away. The noise snapped through the gentle and shy atmosphere and brought both girls to their senses. Katara slapped her hand over her mouth to stop the question coming out and Jin hurriedly buried her face in the pillow. When she looked up again, she was laughing awkwardly.

"I'm so sorry, Katara. I shouldn't be telling you that," she said through her laughter. "Not when you like Zuko too!" She dropped the pillow and uneasily brushed one of her bangs out of her face. Katara felt her cheeks burn and she promptly shook her head. How could have so easily forgotten what she had wanted to explain to Jin in the first place?

"About that… I don't have any… romantic feelings towards Zuko. I'm actually…" She hesitated in her explanation, wondering if Jin was actually going to listen and believe her this time. "I'm with Aang." Katara had expected Jin to be a little surprised, just as everyone else had been when Aang had announced it to them all. What she didn't expect was for Jin's eyebrows to shoot up and her mouth to drop open in utter shock and disbelief. But that was exactly what she got. Perhaps it was just extremely surprising for someone who didn't know her and Aang very well.

"Eh? Really?" Jin exclaimed when she found her voice again. "I never would have guessed…"

Was it really that hard to believe?

* * *

It took a while to finish setting up the bedrooms. Mainly because Jin insisted that Katara tell her everything about how she became Aang's girlfriend, prompting her for explanations when the water bender wasn't sure what to say about why she was initially confused and how she eventually changed her mind. Jin did nothing to hide her surprise, but Katara decided it was because she didn't know them that well.

When they returned to the main room, it was almost exactly as they left it. So it was impossible to tell who might have been walking past the bedroom earlier. Suki was protecting the now delicious smelling dinner from Sokka, who was trying to sneak a taste. Leaving Mai to watch over it, stirring the contents of the pot. Toph had filled the space where both Mai and Sokka had sat previously. Thankfully, she was not picking her toes. Aang was playing with Momo, making a little air-ball for the lemur to chase. Iroh was sat down next to Zuko, speaking with a serious look on his face. The young Fire Lord was staring intensely at his teapot, having not moved an inch from his earlier position. Although it wasn't clear whether he was listening intently to Iroh or trying to ignore him completely.

"I hope he's not giving you tips, Zuko," Katara quipped, making the Fire Lord and his Uncle look up at her. "That would be cheating." Zuko glared at her, while Iroh raised an intrigued eyebrow. Apparently he did not know why Zuko was concentrating so much on the tea. Which made Katara wonder what they had been talking about while so separated from everyone else.

"I don't need any tips," Zuko said when he finally stopped glaring. "Uncle is just impatient for me to finish."

"Of course, I'm impatient! You've started over three times since I first sat down," Iroh declared, causing Katara to flash a look of triumph in their direction before she moved off to help Mai start serving dinner, as Suki still had her hands full with Sokka. Jin moved off to sit by Aang, watching the game he was playing with Momo, laughing lightly at the lemurs antics.

The evening passed by very quickly. The group sat around in a circle while they ate, all enjoying the meal. Suki made a point of explaining everything Mai did to help, earning the other girl a lot of praise. Especially from Sokka, who expressed his thanks with his mouth full. Zuko's tea was finally served with dinner. His many attempts had been worthwhile, as everyone was happy with their cup. Iroh praised him, in particular, claiming that it was a shame that Zuko couldn't follow in his footsteps as a tea entrepreneur. Which the Fire Lord insisted he didn't want to do anyway. Katara rewarded his efforts by telling him that it was ALMOST the best tea she'd ever tasted and that he should try again at breakfast. Although, as she had had three cups by the end of the meal, there was no denying that it was quite possible Zuko would one day win her challenge. He really must have picked up a lot from his Uncle.

After they had all eaten, Iroh suggested they have Pai Sho tournament. Somehow he ended up getting the guys to play while the girls cleaned up. Sokka almost made a joke about it, but froze when he found Katara, Suki and Mai all throwing fierce glares in his direction. Jin simply laughed at his half sentence, while Toph teasingly let the ground beneath him rumble. Even though she was lounging in the pillows again and not helping out at all. Once all the cleaning had been done, the girls sat down to watch the tournament. First Aang went up against Sokka. Despite how long Sokka's turns took as he contemplated his strategy, Aang's experience won the game. Whenever Sokka took his time, Aang would tell everyone about how he used to play with Monk Gyatso. After that, Sokka tried to redeem himself against Zuko, but the Fire Lord proved to be just as experienced as the Avatar. Admitting defeat, Sokka curled up against Suki to watch the rest of the matches. Aang and Zuko went up against each other next. It was a longer match, but eventually Zuko achieved victory, proving that he had given in to his Uncle's requests to play more often than he let on. Aang tried again against Iroh, but the old general proved too skilled. Which left the final match between Zuko and Iroh.

Unlike Aang, Zuko was familiar with his Uncle's tactics. So even though he was on the defensive, he managed to keep the game going for quite a while. Long enough for Jin to start questioning the rest of the group about their adventures. Sokka quite enjoyed the attention, jumping in with his jokes even when others were talking. Mai had sat herself down next to Suki, but her eyes were carefully following every move of their visitor. Having shared enough of her tales for the day, Katara sat herself right next to the Pai Sho board, watching the game between the two Fire Nation men. She'd never played the game and it looked to be quite interesting. She watched as Iroh stroked the hair of his chin while he planned his move. He'd move a tile with a confident smirk and Katara would turn her eyes to Zuko. He would lean forward, scratching his head in thought, ruffling his dark hair. He'd make his move and Katara's eyes would flicker back to Iroh. This continued going back and forth until finally Zuko was left with only three harmonious tile. They tallied up their points and the Fire Lord hung his head in defeat.

"That was a great game, nephew," Iroh chortled, already clearing the tiles from the board. "How about another round?"

"Sure," Zuko replied, half-heartedly, making his Uncle's smile widen. At which point, Jin jumped to her feet.

"I'd love to stay for another game, but it is time I went home," she announced, moving towards the door. Out of the corner of her eyes, Katara could have sworn she had seen Mai's mouth curling upwards. Aang offered to give Jin a lift home on Appa, which she politely declined.

"Well make sure you do come to the party tomorrow night," Toph told her. "I need someone to hang with while these guys are in couple city." Suki blushed furiously and Aang rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. Zuko and Mai both looked indifferent to the comment, while Sokka looked proud. Katara frowned. She hadn't heard anyone talking about the party, let alone inviting Jin. Perhaps it had been while she was watching the Pai Sho game, she hadn't paid much attention to much else at the time. Jin laughed and gave a firm nod before disappearing out the door, closing it behind her.

"Well, as entertaining as this is, I'm going to bed," Mai said suddenly, getting to her feet. She didn't wait for anyone to respond, simply disappearing further into the house, towards the bedrooms. Katara was hit with the sudden suspicion that Mai had only stayed up so long in the first place because Jin hadn't left. She actually wasn't sure which of them she should feel sorry for. If she should feel sorry for anyone at all. Perhaps Zuko. Since he was in the middle of it all.

Having gotten lost in her thoughts on the matter, the water bender hadn't noticed that the next Pai Sho game had started. It seemed to be going at the same slow pace as the last match. If anything, it was taking even longer. Long enough for Sokka to start fidgeting and stretching, letting out loud yawn. Eventually Suki got irritated with him rolling about the floor and told him to go to bed, actually dragging him to his feet and out of the room when he protested. It didn't take long for Toph to follow suit, claiming that she'd better drag Suki into the girls room to save Aang the embarrassment of seeing anything. However Aang hung around for a while afterwards, watching the game, asking Katara if she was tired and playing with Momo. Eventually, he too gave into sleep, picking up the lemur and disappearing into the boys room.

Katara stayed to watch the game, determined for everyone else to go to bed first. She would not go until she was certain that were all asleep. That was if she dared to go to bed at all. Now that everyone knew about her dreams, she wasn't sure she could handle them fussing over her. She was supposed to be the one that looked after everyone else.

As if Iroh and Zuko sensed her urgency, the game suddenly picked up the pace. Both men took less time deciding which tile to move where. Zuko was suddenly doing very badly and Iroh wore a surprisingly mischievous grin. Katara wasn't sure if the Fire Lord had given up or if his Uncle had previously been holding back, but before she knew it the old man had won and was getting to his feet.

"It has gotten late, I need my rest," he stated, stretching out his arms and giving a long exaggerated yawn. "If you're staying up, perhaps you two can play a game. Goodnight." Both Katara and Zuko mumbled good night to Iroh as he left. Neither noticed that his footsteps stopped once he was through the doorway and out of sight.

"Did you want to play?" Zuko asked, gathering up the tiles that were left on the board from his game with his Uncle. Katara scanned them over, she recognised the White Lotus tile first, it being the symbol of the order of the same name. Then the wheel tile that Zuko had used to rotate the surrounding tiles during the match. Iroh had smirked when he did that, although the water bender wasn't sure why.

"No thanks. I think I need to know the rules better before I play against anyone who is good at it," Katara replied, before a little grin appeared on her face. "Maybe I'll challenge Sokka in the morning." She wouldn't have reacted to her own joke, but Zuko huffed as he stifled a laugh and it made her chuckle. Smiling modestly, she then decided to explain her confusion. "Honestly, I know I was watching, but I'm confused. I don't get how your Uncle won and so suddenly. You all counted up points during the other games."

"That's because…" Zuko paused and frowned at the tiles in his hand, as if he were annoyed that he had already removed them from the board. "He had a consistent chain of harmonies around the centre point and so he automatically won…" Katara looked at him blankly, making his frown deepen. The Fire Lord sighed and piled up the tiles neatly at the side of the board. "I could teach you, if you want."

Katara thought about it for a moment. It was late. She could feel her eyes getting heavy. She needed something to keep her awake. Surely learning a new game would stimulate her mind and prevent her sleeping. On the other hand, she couldn't keep Zuko awake for her own selfish reasons. Even if had offered.

"Not tonight," she said as gently as possible, not wanting to sound like she didn't want him teaching her. "It's really time we were going to sleep…"

"Of course… Uncle would be a better teacher anyway," Zuko replied, nothing showing whether or not he was happy with her response. He got to his feet and just stood there, looking down at her. Katara frowned, wondering why he hadn't moved. It wasn't until he offered her his hand that she realised he had been waiting for her to stand. Hesitantly, she accepted his hand and let him pull her to her feet. She held on for a moment, relishing in the warmth of his hands, feeling it transfer through their fingertips. Then she awkwardly pulled her hand free.

"Uh… thanks," she said softly, not moving from the spot. She wasn't sure what to do next. Perhaps she could go to the girls room and pretend to sleep. However, with the weariness that lingered over her, she doubted she would evade sleep for long if she lay down. She would just have to make Zuko leave before her. Which apparently he wasn't going to do, as he was still stood there, rubbing the back of his head and messing up his hair in the process. He opened and shut his mouth several times, causing Katara to frown at him.

"Katara… About your dreams…" he said finally. She flinched. All that time she had spent being angry at him for not saying anything and he was bringing it up now that she had calmed down? Unsure of what to say, she just wrapped her arms around herself, waiting for him to continue. "Next time you have one… I mean, if you want to talk… You should come to me…" He was hesitant in his words, sighing resignedly between phrases and never meeting her eyes.

"Come to you?" Katara repeated, raising an eyebrow at him. What exactly was he trying to say?

"Yes. I mean… with Azula… It was our fight. Everything that happened is between us, so I think I would be the best person for you to talk to. I can listen and understand how you feel," Zuko explained, finally getting his words out with more certainty. Katara had to wonder if he had practiced what to say. Maybe the reason he hadn't said anything earlier was because he hadn't known the right words. At that thought, she felt the urge to comfort him. As if he was the one having nightmares. It was the same urge that she had felt at the meeting. This time though, she did not hold herself back from taking his hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. Finally he met her gaze, showing a gentle sincerity in his golden eyes. And something else. Something she didn't recognise.

"I'll remember that, Zuko," Katara said softly, never tearing her eyes from his face. "Thank you."

"Any time too!" Zuko suddenly insisted. "Even if it's the middle of the night and you've woken up and need to talk. You can come straight to me and wake me and make sure I'm alive and we'll talk about everything you need to." He froze, as if he'd only just realised how strangely eager he sounded. "I mean… it would help prevent any problems like this morning."

Using the hand she was holding, Katara pulled Zuko towards her, somehow managing to catch him off guard. Her arms wrapped up and around his shoulders and she buried her face in his chest. Feeling his arms wrap around her waist and his chin nestle on top of her head, she smiled contently. He was being so sweet. It comforted her to know that he wanted to help. The last time he had helped her because he wanted her to stop being angry with him, now he was doing it for her sake. He was being nice and so very warm. It was so unlike him…

Suddenly the image of him sat in the corner with Iroh talking to him quietly and seriously flashed in her mind. How Iroh had finished the Pai Sho game so quickly after the three of them were alone in the room. How hastily he had made his exit. Katara pushed away from Zuko. Not enough to pull out of the hug, but enough to stare at him straight in the face.

"Whose idea was this?" she asked fiercely, her suspicious tone making it clear she was not referring to the hug.

"Mine!" Zuko said a little too quickly. Seeing the doubt on her face, he quickly amended. "Uncle's…" Katara made a noise of disapproval and tried pushing away from him completely, but his arms held tightly around her waist, keeping her close. He leaned down and pressed his forehead to hers, so that she was forced to keep looking at him. "It was both really. Uncle was the one that pointed out that I would be the best person for you to talk to… but… I'm the one saying that you can do it at any time. I won't mind if you wake me up just to tell me that you're scared."

Katara's face never softened and she felt his sigh on her skin before he loosened his hold and stepped back from her. She immediately folded her arms across her chest and glared at him. Yet for some reason, she believed that he meant his words. Perhaps it was the softness in his voice, the slightly embarrassed way that he held himself or the shining honesty in his eyes. When had he ever looked at her like that before?

"Alright Zuko," she sighed, dropping her angry stance. Zuko actually gave a relieved smile, which made her smile sincerely back at him. "I appreciate it. Now… why don't you go to bed?"

"Are you goi-"

"I'm going to practice my water bending first," Katara said immediately, cutting him off. Before he could say anything, she added. "I'd invite you to spar, but I don't think that's wise in here." She gestured to the room, which was practically begging to be set on fire with all the rich decorations, the pillows, the wall hangings and the plants. Definitely not a place suited for fire bending.

"Alright then…" Zuko nodded, moving to leave the room. He paused at the door and looked back at her. "Good night Katara."

"Good night Zuko," she replied. She moved into a water bending stance, as if to prove that she really was going to practice. She might as well do it anyway. She had to keep herself awake somehow. She smiled as he left and immediately started moving, bending water out of her pouch.

Now that he was gone, she became extremely aware of how warm his embrace had been. Were all fire benders naturally that temperature? Or was he actually trying to keep her warm? Either way, it felt nice.

* * *

**A/N:** Any of you who want to review and sarcastically say "Oh, so you remembered this is supposed to be Zutara?", go right ahead. I'm sure I deserve it for making you wait. So, what did you guys think of Zuko and his teapot? I couldn't get the image of him sat in the corner out of my head, so I used it to add a little more interaction between Zuko and Katara to the chapter. The rules and tiles in the Pai Sho game are taken from the WikiHow page. If you type 'Pai Sho' into Google, it will be the first result. Hope you enjoyed the chapters! Until next time!


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